A long time ago, I played an MMORPG that was scheduled to shut down the beta world. That feeling, in the last moments, of everything around you seeming just as before, but knowing that this could be the last time ever you’re seeing that world. That community.
I’m getting the same feeling looking at reddit right now.
Sure, the blackout might fizzle. The admins might be forced to recant, most subreddits might return. Even if they don’t, reddit could survive in some form.
… or a digg apocalypse is repeated, and we’re all presently witnessing the last moments before the bombs fall and nothing will ever be as it used to be.
A strange feeling, standing on the precipice of Internet history.
I’d think that despite a fair number of folks leaving permanently and new content being created in non-publicly accessible subs, reddit will probably limp along for a few more months - the company leadership has steadfastly refused to listen to their userbase and instead has repeatedly doubled down on their untenable position.
we’re going to need a lot of popcorn