[fdsafdewe]

As the other "social" giants converge on ultra-short, rapidly-swiped video clips as the current state of the art in user attention draining, my question is - what is the next step?

As a now non-owner of even a smartphone, I overtly ogle other people using Tiktok. It's equally amusing and baffling for me, and I feel pity for that person.

[Karellen]

Blipverts

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blipvert

From the Max Headroom episode 1 synopsis: Investigative TV news reporter Edison Carter uncovers the disturbing secret of a new TV advert technology in use by his own employers, Network 23, called "Blipverts", high-intensity high-speed commercials with the ability to overload people's nervous systems, causing them to short circuit or explode.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Headroom_(TV_series)#Seaso...

[datavirtue]

So, subliminal messaging?

[DebtDeflation]

>what is the next step?

What could it possibly be? There's just text, images, audio, and video. All these social media companies are just riffing on those same formats with their own spin (filters, formatting, expiration time, content length, etc.) Same as with like/dislike, follow/subscribe, share, etc. actions. Same as with instrumentation/telemetry to harvest data and sell to advertisers. What else is there? Main difference nowadays is the recommendation algorithms for keeping users engaged.

[hammock]

>my question is - what is the next step?

Wearables, AR/VR appendages and implants. I know, not the answer you were looking for

[slfnflctd]

This is totally it.

The tech is getting a bunch of hate right now for some reason (possibly the open disgust the Meta thing seems to provoke, inherited directly from the already loud anti-Facebook voices), but it seems shortsighted to me. I wish Facebook had just stayed Facebook and kept Oculus going as a separate brand-- in some ways they've almost harmed the market with their choices.

VR can be great fun for anyone who can tolerate it, and even many of those with motion sickness issues can overcome it (I did). It also gets you moving around, something that doesn't get enough credit.

That said, I think AR will absolutely dwarf all else in a nearer time frame. People are going to come up with all kinds of wild body sensory interfaces with friends and/or internet audiences, and I'm not even talking about sex stuff.

Accessories which light up specific colors or patterns based on anything from biometrics to video views to investments, cascading emoticon displays sewn into clothing fed by live feed responses, sunglasses showing secret geocache stashes (or human contacts) related to alternate reality games... the kids are gonna come up with all kinds of ways to be cooler than their parents, as they always have.

[fdsafdewe]

I am only looking for answer so I can get ahead of the game ;-). But yes, logically, M. Zuckerburg is right (if there is a future here, that is, which I am personally not convinced about).

[mtalantikite]

> As a now non-owner of even a smartphone...

Curious what you're using these days? I've got an old iPhone that I haven't updated past iOS 14 and have been wanting to just drop smartphones completely when this thing dies. I'm just wondering what I'll do for MFA mainly, and here in NYC it's nice to have maps when you're out (even though I remember the time I got myself around the city just fine without them 15-ish years ago).

[harryvederci]

I'm not the one you replied to, but I'd say: Get any random dumbphone for a small amount of money, live with it for 2 weeks. See if you like it. If not, no time wasted deciding on the "best" replacement product.

For me, the 2 weeks turned into 5 years (so far).

Oh and I've migrated to a different country in that time, and I'm still alive, despite not having a navigation app thingy. No excuses! :)

[windowsrookie]

Unfortunately you can't just use an old flip-phone because the 2G networks are all shutdown. Although there are a couple companies today making "dumb" phones.

A good middle ground I found is the Light Phone. You can send and receive texts, load music and podcasts onto it, and it has GPS navigation. But, it has no web browser, no appstore and a monochrome e-ink display.

https://www.thelightphone.com/

[fdsafdewe]

I use a Nokia 105 that I found in a desk drawer.

>here in NYC it's nice to have maps when you're out

I'm very grateful I live in a country where going smartphone-free, a bit like going car-free, is still a viable choice while maintaining a relatively mainstream lifestyle. Good luck!

Saying that, colleagues and friends have had a laugh out of some of the escapades I've got myself in to, with no smartphone for navigation. I still maintain that my choice is better for me overall, in terms of time and energy usage.

[Am4TIfIsER0ppos]

Have you considered using nothing?

[mtalantikite]

I've considered just using a smart watch, since it'd let me keep in contact with my wife or coordinate when out meeting up with friends. But I guess no, I haven't considered just getting rid of a phone/communication device altogether. I haven't lived with a TV for 20 years, so maybe I just go back some decades altogether and give up the phone for a while to see how it feels.

[hotpotamus]

> what is the next step?

I assume our elite education system is currently fostering the next generation of innovators to answer this question.