News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by searchableguy on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @07:44AM (#24209387)
Use an RSS reader. You will like the lack of feeling of being forced to comment on things you don't care much about in retrospection. No tracking or ads, only content. You can filter shady sites or posts from appearing.

Here are some readers.

0] https://github.com/GetStream/Winds

1] https://github.com/FreshRSS/FreshRSS

2] https://github.com/feedbin/feedbin

3] https://github.com/yang991178/fluent-reader

If you like something closed source, try feedly.

Reddit provides rss for now. For sources that don't, you can use rss.app or similar.

https://www.reddit.com/wiki/rss

One more useful thing some readers provide is an email address that you can use for subscribing to newsletters.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by keepingscore on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:40AM (#24209775)
I built a better rss feed for reddit to use with Feedly.

Notable features: * Links to the content rather than the comments * Embeds a summary of the content * Supports images, gifs and videos * Extra query params (nsfw block, up vote limits) * Open source https://github.com/trashhalo/reddit-rss

https://www.reddit.com/r/rss/comments/fvg3ed/i_built_a_bette...

https://www.reddit.com/r/rss/comments/galitc/my_improved_red...

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by jhardy54 on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @10:22AM (#24210646)
Yes! Bonus points for using software made by a Scuttlebutt friend.
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by spians on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:57AM (#24209879)
Yes, I have been using your feed and it's amazing. Thanks!
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by spians on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:13AM (#24209597)
Yup. RSS is the way to go for browsing Reddit without all the dark patterns.

Self plug - you can try my app Plenary on Android (no ads/trackers) - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.spians.ple... that has Reddit as one of the RSS Assistant option. It basically creates RSS feed for subreddits, users, search terms etc for you.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by robinduckett on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:34AM (#24209742)
A feature of the app that you can't use without buying a monthly subscription or paying £10.49, to whom it may concern.
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by YPCrumble on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:58AM (#24209884)
Interestingly parent’s plug is a dark pattern to avoid dark patterns!

It’s also surprising that even on HN, a place where many people write software for a living, people are avoidant of advertising paid features.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by spians on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @09:22AM (#24210077)
> Interestingly parent’s plug is a dark pattern to avoid dark patterns!

Sorry I didn't find any dark patterns here. If you can elaborate more on this, that would be really helpful.

> It’s also surprising that even on HN, a place where many people write software for a living, people are avoidant of advertising paid features.

Exactly! A lot of users want privacy focused - no ads apps. But many of them are hesitant to pay for it. For them, all apps should be FOSS (that means relying on good will of the developer that he will have motivation to maintain the app regularly or relying on some bug foundations) and no dev should generate revenue from their apps.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by giancarlostoro on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @10:13AM (#24210540)
> Sorry I didn't find any dark patterns here. If you can elaborate more on this, that would be really helpful.

I don't think you were being malicious, but it would of been useful to know up front that those RSS features cost money is all. Otherwise I see nothing wrong in your initial comment.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by spians on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @10:17AM (#24210583)
Yes I agree, could've been clearer upfront about it being a premium feature. Thanks!
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by freedomben on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @10:42AM (#24210853)
You're right, I do want a FOSS solution and I'm hesitant to pay for something closed and controlled entirely by the dev.

But I am not opposed at all to pay for apps that include the source (and build instructions). I don't mind if it's licensed accordingly to prevent me redistributing it (which would undermine sales). I frequently buy apps like that.

More times than I can count I have bought an app that was later either abandoned when it stopped making money, or got an unwanted UI overhaul that wrecked it, or removed an obscure feature I depended on, etc. I will happily pay for software, but if it's not software I could potentially maintain myself then the amount of money I'm willing to spend goes way down and I'm a lot more hesitant to make the initial purchase.

It's not about money, it's about freedom.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by Chris2048 on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @02:20PM (#24213977)
> that means relying on good will of the developer that he will have motivation to maintain the app regularly or relying on some bug foundations

As opposed to paying for it which guarantees you'll get the service you want - except it doesn't. At least FLOSS would give you and others the opportunity to fix bugs /maintain the app themselves.

> But many of them are hesitant to pay for it

Depends what it is. There's a difference paying for a non free app, and tipping for a free app.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by spians on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:56AM (#24209871)
Thank you for trying it out. Plenary has monthly, quarterly and yearly subscription options and even has a lifetime purchase plan. That is the way support the development of the app so that it doesn't have to rely on ads and works without any intrusions to users. That is the point of this post, right?
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by encom on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @10:48AM (#24210920)
Another RSS reader: https://theoldreader.com/

Been using it daily since Google googled its Reader.

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by SamWhited on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:34AM (#24209741)
This. If you want something already hosted try Innoreader (https://www.inoreader.com). I like having software I can just support with money instead of seeing garbage ads and having my personal information sold because it's "free" (though they do have a free plan if you can't afford or don't want to support them).
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by cyborgx7 on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @08:22AM (#24209653)
Thanks for those links. Seems there have been some developments since I last checked into rss clients. Are you aware of any good browser plug-ins in that field? I've been using brief:

https://addons.mozilla.org/de/firefox/addon/brief/

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by buo on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @01:17PM (#24212950)
For people who like text-based programs, I'd recommend newsboat: https://newsboat.org/
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by jabroni_salad on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @01:40PM (#24213331)
this is not my project but I have been enjoying this rss proxy which can let you limit which posts get into your feed by top rank, score threshold, or quantity of posts per day. I use it because even a moderately popular subreddit can be a bit of a firehose.

https://reddit-top-rss.herokuapp.com

Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by j-james on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @04:12PM (#24215675)
Additionally, as a browser extension: https://fraidyc.at
Re:Ask HN: Why is Reddit on mobile so obsessed with making m... by Y_Y on Wednesday August 19, 2020 @10:18AM (#24210596)
I'm still waiting for Google Reader to come back.