https://www.reddit.com/r/reddit/comments/11l3td9/making_redditing_simpler/
created by kriketjunkie on 07/03/2023 at 16:26 UTC
529 upvotes, 125 top-level comments (showing 25)
Hey redditors![1] I’m Pali, Reddit’s Chief Product Officer. Today, I’d like to share how we’re thinking about making Reddit simpler. But before we look forward, let’s take a quick look back at 2022.
1: https://i.redd.it/ev8l354gecma1.png
Last year’s product priorities[2] were centered around five key pillars: making Reddit Simple, Universal, Performant, Excellent, and Relevant – and we made progress on those focus areas by improving posting experiences[3], launching our developer program[4], making comments searchable[5], updating our moderator tools[6], and so much more.
2: https://www.reddit.com/r/reddit/comments/v3frc1/what_were_working_on_this_year/
3: https://www.reddit.com/r/reddit/comments/tahpcx/creator_stats_performance_metrics_now_available/
4: https://www.reddit.com/r/reddit/comments/xppmng/good_bot_the_past_present_and_future_of_bots_on/
5: https://www.reddit.com/r/reddit/comments/t9nuaz/whats_up_with_reddit_search_episode_v_relevance/
6: https://www.reddit.com/r/reddit/comments/weiqc0/better_faster_stronger_recent_improvements_to/
As we head into our 18th year[7], a lot about Reddit has changed, but our core ethos hasn’t: Reddit remains the de facto space for online communities. While we build the platform, it’s all of you who build the diverse communities where millions of people worldwide post, vote, and comment daily. You make Reddit unique by contributing with creativity, passion, and memes. We want to empower all redditors – new and tenured – to easily connect with the communities that they find meaningful and rewarding.
7: https://i.redd.it/qz95u2ly7cma1.gif
As you know, Reddit is a big place. To help people find their home on Reddit, we’re prioritizing product and design improvements that will simplify and streamline how redditors discover, join, and contribute (post, vote, comment) to communities and bring new ways to engage in conversations and content across Reddit.
Here’s a look at some of the features you’ll soon see on Reddit (including one that just launched):
Last month, we introduced[8] the ability to search within post comments, so that you can quickly get to the parts of the conversation you’re looking for – without having to expand comments or embark on a long scrolling session (we’ve all been there[9]).
9: https://i.redd.it/9rm3hy1g67ma1.gif
Sometimes you come to Reddit with your reading glasses on, ready to dive into that wall of text. And not just the in-depth post, but all the comments too. So we’re building a feed dedicated to those times you’re in the mood to read and browse text on Reddit.
But there are also times when even the TL;DR won’t do, you just want to watch all the great videos shared in your favorite communities. And that’s where – you guessed it – we’re building a feed with just video and gif posts.
​
This year, we’re getting rid of some of the clutter that doesn’t add to your experience on Reddit. By cleaning up the interface, we hope to make it easier and faster for you to find the content you’re looking for and contribute to the communities you care about.
​
Coming soon, we’ll introduce our updated web platform – which will make Reddit faster and more reliable – and changes to the video player that will let you have conversations while watching. We’re also looking forward to telling you about chat enhancements, new storefront updates, and more.
Thank you for reading, and like I said in last year’s post[10], thank you for making Reddit what it is. I’ll be sticking around to answer questions today, so… AMA!
10: https://www.reddit.com/r/reddit/comments/v3frc1/what_were_working_on_this_year/
Comment by 493Hz at 07/03/2023 at 17:50 UTC
134 upvotes, 2 direct replies
I hope decluttering the interface doesn't mean to remove all hints of an origin of a post. Recently, you removed the username of creators of posts in the homefeed in the android mobile app. This is very sad, because I want to know who created a post I like without entering the specific post page. I also liked the quick access to a profile page via the home feed. So please bring back the user attribution and on top please don't remove the info in which subreddit a post has been made in!
Comment by clemenslucas at 07/03/2023 at 16:39 UTC
355 upvotes, 4 direct replies
Unfortunately "decluttered interface" looks to me like Reddit is gonna get a lot more generic.
Is the goal to further mix all subreddits and have most users just browse through their home feed or all the entire time?
I think Reddit should focus on what makes reddit unique instead of trying to beat Meta or TikTok at their game, where they have a headstart and years of experience.
Comment by Quirky_Word at 07/03/2023 at 18:52 UTC
104 upvotes, 4 direct replies
Does “decluttering” mean you’ll finally reinstate the option to turn off “Ask to use App?”
That option was removed weeks ago under the guise of “improvements” but we were told it was only temporary.
So are you finally removing the annoying messages that pop up every five minutes?
Comment by llehsadam at 07/03/2023 at 17:33 UTC
185 upvotes, 4 direct replies
These look like broad changes that will affect the feel of being in a community. Everything will look even more generic.
When you enter a subreddit, that should be special. I miss the old days when subreddits had unique css to really bring the community-feel home. Filters in communities were customizable with css, you could have more easter eggs, more unique experiences... reddit has definitely instagramatoktified over the years.
Comment by RXSarsaparilla at 07/03/2023 at 17:46 UTC*
121 upvotes, 2 direct replies
A few of the recent declutterings have made Reddit much more difficult to read, at least on iOS:
1. You removed the sources from the News feed. I'd like to know where I'll be going when I click a story.
2. The subreddit name is gone from the top of posts when scrolling through Popular. Many times the text or picture needs the context of knowing where it was posted to make sense. If I see someone posting about a big achievement or major change to a product but can't tell which game or movie sub it refers too, it confuses me and slows down comprehension.
Also, some types of posts have had their scrolling behavior altered so that I never know if I need to scroll right to get to the next post or up. Recently, a change was made so that if I scroll up the post closes. It's very confusing.
Comment by gandalf45435 at 07/03/2023 at 16:30 UTC
410 upvotes, 7 direct replies
making Reddit Simple
that's why I use the most simple version possible. Old reddit on browser.
Comment by Omnigreen at 07/03/2023 at 17:11 UTC
86 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Bring back sorting top by time into the home feed! Also, make it so we can choose the amount of time! If I were not on the internet for 3 days for example and I want to see what I missed I have only the ability to see the top of either a day or a week which is stupid.
Comment by beIIe-and-sebastian at 07/03/2023 at 18:13 UTC*
36 upvotes, 2 direct replies
As the Chief Product Officer, can you shed some light on this in regard to your emphasis on a decluttered and simple experience.
Some users are reporting getting 20+ ads in a row in their feed. Is this normal behaviour?
Comment by MajorParadox at 07/03/2023 at 17:08 UTC
30 upvotes, 1 direct replies
New content-aware feeds
Are these replacing the home feed? I hope not because the separation seems a bit arbitrary. Videos and images could be used in discussion-based communities and text posts could be used for image and video content when added inline.
Also, where do image posts fit in? I assume they don't fall under Read or Watch?
This year, we’re getting rid of some of the clutter that doesn’t add to your experience on Reddit. By cleaning up the interface, we hope to make it easier and faster for you to find the content you’re looking for and contribute to the communities you care about.
I'm not a fan of making the banner smaller and hiding the community about/menu even further. It's already difficult enough, mostly because it can only be accessed from the community level.
Coming soon, we’ll introduce our updated web platform – which will make Reddit faster and more reliable – and changes to the video player that will let you have conversations while watching. We’re also looking forward to telling you about chat enhancements, new storefront updates, and more.
I look forward to the coming announcements!
Comment by fighterace00 at 07/03/2023 at 18:12 UTC
33 upvotes, 0 direct replies
Looks like "decluttered" means getting rid of **pinned** posts entirely.
You can add more moderator tools but that's meaningless if we don't have effective communication with our user base.
Comment by Kahzgul at 07/03/2023 at 19:59 UTC
29 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Holy shit stop putting subs I’m not subbed to in my home feed.
Comment by Severe_Sweet_862 at 07/03/2023 at 17:36 UTC
123 upvotes, 1 direct replies
The one thing I ask of reddit is to stop converting it into a tiktok or instagram reels format. Reddit videos are supposed to be something you can watch and discuss in the comments, as things stand in the app, you can watch one and swipe to the next video in the feed as you would in any other app. That ruins the entire reddit experience and I beg you to not become a participant in the movement that is actively destroying attention spans and destroys the core purpose of a website.
Comment by Capelily at 07/03/2023 at 16:46 UTC
137 upvotes, 4 direct replies
As long as old reddit is still an option, it will be my go-to.
Comment by will_sherman at 07/03/2023 at 19:07 UTC
23 upvotes, 2 direct replies
Just kill the bullshit notifications (a new post in some sub, go see your comment, etc), and stop putting posts from unsubbed subs in my feed. That would go a long way toward decluttering Reddit. Until you fix those things, no other 'improvements' matter.
Comment by Simco_ at 07/03/2023 at 16:31 UTC
45 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Coming soon, we’ll introduce our updated web platform
I hope this addresses 2/3 of the screen being wasted in new reddit and the site being optimized for monitors like old.reddit is.
Comment by [deleted] at 07/03/2023 at 17:02 UTC
12 upvotes, 1 direct replies
[deleted]
Comment by tallbutshy at 07/03/2023 at 17:14 UTC
20 upvotes, 0 direct replies
changes to the video player that will let you have conversations while watching
That floating player should be banished to the phantom zone.
Can we have an option to choose between having the video full-screen, floating or at the top half of the screen. Preferably both on mobile and desktop
Comment by SampleOfNone at 07/03/2023 at 17:02 UTC
24 upvotes, 3 direct replies
Are moderators going to get a heads up on when Reddit plans to roll this out so they have time to redesign their custom mobile banners? Not to mention any and all places where they reference to “about” and “menu” now Reddit is throwing those out?
Comment by Chrimunn at 07/03/2023 at 16:36 UTC
12 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Can you elaborate more on the desktop web improvements? How much faster are things looking?
Comment by Inothernews1 at 07/03/2023 at 16:31 UTC
30 upvotes, 2 direct replies
The text-only and image/video-only mode is actually such a good idea I'm wondering why it wasn't introduced years ago!
Comment by MudiChuthyaHai at 07/03/2023 at 17:25 UTC
14 upvotes, 3 direct replies
New Reddit still sucks on mobile browsers.
Comment by Jontun189 at 08/03/2023 at 06:28 UTC
4 upvotes, 0 direct replies
You're gonna fuck it up and make it more confusing for no reason again, ain't ya?
Comment by [deleted] at 07/03/2023 at 16:30 UTC
8 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Why doesn't search within comment text work for video posts yet?
Comment by Elliott2030 at 07/03/2023 at 21:37 UTC
9 upvotes, 1 direct replies
will you make an r/all button again? Sometimes I like to look through the stuff that I didn't choose and that YOU don't choose for me (i.e. "popular") Thanks!
Comment by Sun_Beams at 07/03/2023 at 16:39 UTC*
3 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Is it planned anywhere to help users find Live Talks? u/kriketjunkie
