Pokemon fanatic and homestuck nerd. This is my domain. Not much else, really.
I actually have a shiny doduo, this blog is made in part by her. Thank goodness for Casuaris.
So I think the best strat here is for the users who did get the new layout to just stop using the desktop version of the site for a while, like a week or a month or however long their ‘experiment’ is supposed to last, while the users who didn’t get the new layout should keep using the desktop version like normal or, perhaps, use it even more than usual.
My guess is that they’re doing basic A/B testing on the new layout to see if it would boost engagement: the userbase is split roughly 50/50 between the 2 versions and they are going to be comparing the engagement data between the 2 groups of users to see if it’s worth it switching everyone to the new layout or not.
Basically,if you got the new layout and don’t like it - don’t use it. If engagement metrics of group B (new layout) are lower than those of group A (no change), the experiment will be considered a failure and they will have to reverse the change.
If your tumblr suddenly looks like twitter - it’s a sign to log off and go touch some grass! (or just use the mobile app since that engagement data isn’t relevant to this particular experiment)
Don’t just not use it, send feedback too!
There’s a “contact us” option to send feedback about features being launched. GIVE FEEDBACK IN THE APPROPRIATE SPACE!
Not to “As a professional UX researcher” on this thread, but yeah, as a professional UX researcher, now is the exact time to provide clear (but kind!! the poor UX team is usually not responsible for these decisions) feedback on what your thoughts are in regards to this change.
In my job, if I were doing an AB test on a site layout and every person I interviewed said “I hate it, it looks like knockoff twitter, please put the old one back” then I would be very excited to include a nice little bullet point in my report that says “[x] number of participants disliked the new layout :)”
Tumblr’s so damn janky that the new layout everyone is complaining about still hasn’t hit my dash on either of my computers nor my phone. I get to enjoy the site as it is meant to be for a lil while longer
I see Hollywood is now very into the idea of buying something once and then owning it forever and being able to make infinite copies. Which. Isn’t quite the message they imparted upon me in my childhood. In the spirit of their own long-held stance:
I’m going to need y'all to preemptively chill out because the actor’s strike is going to mean a lot of things including shows and movies we’ve been anticipating being pushed way back, and absolutely minimal press tours for the next however long this lasts.
The effects of the writer’s strike are months down the road which made it a whole lot easier to support because as third parties we weren’t really being affected (yet), the effect of the actor’s strike is going to be immediate and we’re going to get a lot more propaganda of “these people are overpaid to begin with.”
Remember our desire for content does not supersede these people’s rights to live.
Here at Tumblr, we’ve been working hard on reorganizing how we work in a bid to gain more users. A larger user base means a more sustainable company, and means we get to stick around and do this thing with you all a bit longer. What follows is the strategy we’re using to accomplish the goal of user growth. The @labs group has published a bit already, but this is bigger. We’re publishing it publicly for the first time, in an effort to work more transparently with all of you in the Tumblr community. This strategy provides guidance amid limited resources, allowing our teams to focus on specific key areas to ensure Tumblr’s future.
The Diagnosis
In order for Tumblr to grow, we need to fix the core experience that makes Tumblr a useful place for users. The underlying problem is that Tumblr is not easy to use. Historically, we have expected users to curate their feeds and lean into curating their experience. But this expectation introduces friction to the user experience and only serves a small portion of our audience.
Tumblr’s competitive advantage lies in its unique content and vibrant communities. As the forerunner of internet culture, Tumblr encompasses a wide range of interests, such as entertainment, art, gaming, fandom, fashion, and music. People come to Tumblr to immerse themselves in this culture, making it essential for us to ensure a seamless connection between people and content.
To guarantee Tumblr’s continued success, we’ve got to prioritize fostering that seamless connection between people and content. This involves attracting and retaining new users and creators, nurturing their growth, and encouraging frequent engagement with the platform.
Our Guiding Principles
To enhance Tumblr’s usability, we must address these core guiding principles.
Expand the ways new users can discover and sign up for Tumblr.
Provide high-quality content with every app launch.
Facilitate easier user participation in conversations.
Retain and grow our creator base.
Create patterns that encourage users to keep returning to Tumblr.
Improve the platform’s performance, stability, and quality.
Below is a deep dive into each of these principles.
Maybe I’m a cynic but here’s what I’m getting from this, and it’s not great:
Tumblr is probably going to start even more vigorously restricting site access to users who are not logged in, even on personal blog pages (they have started doing this, with the non-dashboard url being turned off by default, and the way a few posts of scrolling will bring up a blocking screen). This will destroy the ability to use tumblr as an actual blogging platform.
Tumblr is going to lean more heavily into algorithmic feeds, meaning that our dashboards are probably going to be interspersed with more “recommended” posts pushing bullshit we did not ask to see into our feeds to “deliver the most engaging content”.
Replies/reblogs are going to be reworked and flattened. They say this is to make conversation threads less confusing, which in theory I’d be all for, but I’m not sure I believe that this will be implemented in a way that is friendly to how people actually use the site. It might make it harder to get a good overview of post notes. So, not terrible but I am wary.
Tumblr has confirmed above that they will be attempting to remove duplicate reblogs from your following feed, meaning that you won’t be able to see from looking at your dashboard when/if your friends have reblogged a thing.
All of this, of course, is being done to try and increase “engagement” and sign-up metrics at the expense of their existing userbase, because in our current economy a product cannot exist in a static state, it has to chase the numbers to the bottom.
Fuck capitalism and this site, honestly. They have such a good thing going at the moment where this website is an actual usable platform and they’re rushing to “capitalise on it” by enfuckening what’s good about it.
we’re watching reddit disintegrate because they insisted on disrupting the ways the most active and load-bearing users approached the site, pushing them past the breaking point
if tumblr does the same thing, this site WILL collapse. the content this memo claims to value will only stay here as long as this site’s functionality keeps appealing to the people making it
Gee, Tumblr would probably really hate it if you shared and spread this damning article … To the surprise of absolutely none of Tumblr’s LGBTQ users, it turns out the independent NYC human rights agency Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) found that Tumblr’s ham-fisted adult content ban in December 2018 disproportionately targeted LGBTQ users. The CCHR’s investigation revealed Tumbler’s moderation algorithms is demonstrably biased against queer content. As part of the settlement, Tumblr was obligated to review their prejudicial anti-gay moderation policies. Even more mortifyingly, they’ve also had to hire an expert on sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) issues and provide unconscious bias training to their moderators. I frankly doubt Tumblr has learned a thing from this humbling experience. Just recently the Tumblr algorithm flagged three ancient posts of mine as violating their terms. All three “offenders” were vintage homoerotic beefcake images (softcore by modern standards) roughly 50 – 65-years-old by Bruce of Los Angeles, Bob Mizer and Tom of Finland. (These are of course pioneering queer artists who routinely faced censorship and imprisonment in the fifties and sixties. Plus ca change!). They’ve been visible on my page - corrupting viewers - for years at this point. I appealed all three immediately. Only the Tom of Finland one was approved. The other two are now hidden. So, they haven’t learned much. Apparently, Tumblr – who loves to declare how hip, youthful, inclusive and progressive their values are - wants to restore trust with their queer users. I’d recommend we remember their hypocrisy when Pride rolls around and Tumblr splashes rainbow flags everywhere and attempts to pink wash their image.
In honour of Pride Month, this is worth a reblog! Don’t buy into Tumblr’s hypocritical “pink washing.”
ALT
