>It also restored the dislike button

As a useless button to click? I would assume youtube removed the actual functionality in the backend so what's the point of the button?

It uses an alternative backend where videos pre-removal had their dislike counters archived, and anything post-removal uses dislike data from users with the extension to crowdsource a likely dislike counter.

(in theory, if 5% of viewers of a video are people that have the extension, and only 10% of those viewers hit the dislike button, chances are that's a good sample size to assume that this video should have a 10% dislike ratio, but in practice it's probably a bit more complicated/weighted)

If the signal you are picking up from downvotes is that the channel must be hated in some way you should watch fewer outrage-bait/drama channels and more learning/tutorial channels. Some tutorial videos are made so confusingly and poorly, or worse teach incorrect information altogether, that the only signal for people to know "This video is absolute bollocks and you shouldn't waste your time watching it" is when he gets downvote bombed by anyone watching it. It's a single to then check the comments section where you'll probably see some comment explaining all the problems/incorrect parts of the video with more likes than the video itself has often with a recommendation to a better video on the topic.

Sure - channels absolutely used to be downvote bombed because people were mad at the content creator for whatever reason they may have had. But for a good section of videos the downvotes only spoke about the quality of the video itself and nothing about the content creator.

"Dislike" doesn't mean hate, personally I've only downvoted YouTube videos when they were badly made, or badly presented to the extent that almost any other video on the topic would be better.

It's not about hate, it's a signal that the video is probably going to be a waste of time for the watcher.

Absolute nonsense. You've obviously never used Youtube for anything educational if you can't see the value of the dislike button.

This comment is loaded with 'well meaning virtue' but ultimately it does more harm than good. You're taking it away because some celebrity you like got sad because their video got disliked? Bloody hell.

Making better tools that will detect and manage downvote bombing and hate should be fairly simple if Youtube could be bothered by any of it.

Removing the absolutely needed and valid functionality that is normally used to signal the quality of the content, and save viewers' time, for all users and all cases, should not be the justified sacrifice, just in order to mitigate one bad way to use it.

If downvotes are causing someone that much of a problem just stop uploading content.

There are a lot of clickbait and fraud videos on YouTube. Fake trailers for upcoming movies, videos that pretend to be e.g. a SNL sketch but are just a collage of pictures with a synthesized voiceover, gaming streamers pretending there’s a live event “just about to start” on games like Fortnite.

There’s also disturbing “children’s videos” made by AIs, and fake lifehack or cooking videos that promise things like “if you microwave popcorn with M&Ms you get chocolate covered popcorn”, some of which show dangerous things that have resulted in accidents (e.g. people getting burnt with exploding eggs and the like).

> What a complicated process, all just to express your hatred.

Since when is a downvote equivalent to hate?

You've never downvoted anything on any website ever?

I would love to be able to downvote step-by-step tutorials with obviously non-working steps or missing information.

You clearly never used youtube much

I think it used an alternate backend, possibly https://returnyoutubedislike.com/

Yes, it is that one.

YouTube still has a dislike button. They just don't show you the number of dislikes anymore.

Oh wow, I just assumed it was made by a guy called Vance.

Bob Vance from Vance Refrigeration /s

I know I would find a comment like this! Love you guys

sometimes the flowers arrange themselves, Jim.

I think my positive perception of self named software dates back to Irfanview.

I've been using it since 1998, never felt the need to change to anything else.

ACDSee and XnView were also big players at the time. I also faintly remember one with a panda in its logo, but can't tell what it was...