As quoted from the linked post.
It looks like you’re part of one of our experiments. The logged-in mobile web experience is currently unavailable for a portion of users. To access the site you can log on via desktop, the mobile apps, or wait for the experiment to conclude.
This is separate from the API issue. This will actually BLOCK you from even viewing reddit on your phone without using the official app.
Archive.org link in case the post is removed.
Of course they are, gotta make everyone use the shitty app to farm as much data as possible!
I literally just had an instance of opening a nsfw reddit link from a Google search and it informed me that I could only see nsfw posts in the app…
Reddit finding ways to actively make things worse, while lemmy rapidly improves.
ahahaha the reason I finally stopped using Yelp was because their mobile site would only load part of a review and would force redirect to their app if you tried to expand on any reviews. Rather than download the app or change user agent, I just gave up.
every website and their mother wants you to download their app nowadays.
It almost looks like Reddit is trying to commit suicide in the fastest possible way.
I still have an account there. But I will delete it the moment the Apollo goes dark.
Unfortunately, non of this will matter. There are too many mindless zombies OK with consuming garbage content.
It’s one thing to test a new idea or a UX tweak or similar on a small portion of users - but just turning off a key way to access your service is so just so weird to me. How many of Reddit’s decisions at this point are some version of, “hey, how angry do they get? What can we get away with?”
People need to understand that this is about tracking your eyeballs. Reddit viewed on a webpage does not provide the metadata they want. What metadata does the app provide? Things you wouldn’t think about wanting as a human, but the aggregate is very valuable.
Stuff like how long did you watch that video Ad? Where did you click on screen and at what time? What content were you viewing and what course of action did you take to get there? Web viewing only shows the landing page you arrived on reddit from and the exit page that took you away from reddit. Performing these actions in the app provides metadata cookie crumbs like a trail of roach shit to every single thing you’ve done on reddit in micro activities.
I’m not sure. I’ve worked at companies using amplitude and hotjar that can record all click event and sessions on web
Users can block those with extensions so the data isn’t as reliable
That’s probably a big part. Web browsers can do ad blocking. Within the official Reddit app that’s way more difficult.
Funneling the herd into the slaughterhouse.
Users can block those on desktop without issue. On mobile it’s a bit harder so most people I know don’t even if they use ublock or something on their PCs/laptops (though that is of course only anecdotal).
So if anything if that was the issue they should’ve shut off support for the desktop version LOL /s
It’s so completely wild and backwards. Imagine your not a reddit user, but a search leads you to a reddit link, and you’re on your phone. You see all this stuff about downloading the app instead, and you’re just going to bail, never reading the post. If there was no friction, they may have converted a new user.
They act like everyone already uses reddit and the users are so addicted they’ll put up with anything.
Quora, basically.
I don’t think I’ve ever successfully read one of those, because Google brings me to the site and then it demands I log in. They even go so far as to blur all the content. It’s really really stupid.
“old.reddit.com isn’t going anywhere”
– a spez lie
I think your link is wrong (that’s the one that causes Archive.org to try a new capture). I got it working with this:
Not surprised. They need to milk every last drop of revenue from their users free content for the upcoming IPO.
They just keep digging
haha, digg
Damn they turning into quora
I gave up on quora exactly for this reason lol.
I always hated quora, but somehow they got even worse.
Are they legally allowed to just do that? Just shadow ban certain users temporarily for an ‘experiment’?
If so… Why is that legally allowed??
Why would it be illegal? It’s shitty and it’s obvious what they’re trying to do, but I can’t fathom what law from any jurisdiction this would violate.
Reddit’s unwavering stubbornness to continue spiraling is just plain sad. What a way to go.
Reddit had so much community favor too. The whole awards thing was born from people wanting support the website. If they really struggle to make money could have rolled out an optional subscription or something with a message that everyone would have fallen for. The incompetence is incredible.
Honestly this is so absurd it’s funny. Peak business brain to think that people in 2023 are willing to download an app and register an account to simply access content.
The mobile browsing experience was a huge shitshow anyway. Randomly refreshing webpage, comments never posting or posting 5 times, expanding comments would work sometimes. They actively nuked it to make people use the reddit app. Fuck them
Well, at least you could send a link to a friend who doesn’t have a Reddit account and they could view it. Now they’d be greeted with a friendly “install the app or get out” screen, and let’s be real, they wouldn’t install a whole app just to view the occasional link you’d send them.
