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Box of String
Creative endeavors.

A different approach to social networking

Why I created Withology.

For a long time I’ve felt that social networks can be unhealthy. I’m not the only one. A simple search for reasons to quit will give you plenty of opinions. These are some of mine.

I think the unhealthiest feature of a social network is the main feed. (Even when it shows us what we want to see.) It takes advantage of our curiosity, of our human addiction to information. We crave information and we’re fed it — lots of it.

source

The problem is that most of the information is just noise. Even if it’s from our own friends. It makes us think about things we don’t need to or shouldn’t even know. Things that would be better learned from a direct conversation rather than a global post (where personal information is shared impersonally). And the perpetual stream, the instant gratification, the constant distraction — it’s not just unhealthy, it can be an addiction (even if the information is garbage). It can be a compulsion that removes us from the moment and steals our focus. It pollutes our minds.

The feed has become all-encompassing. It’s difficult to find anything important in all of the noise.

What is noise? It can be all of the automated posts about the actions people take, the random articles they’ve liked, or the photos they’ve commented on. It can be the selfish posts people make (we all do it) because very rarely is something posted for the benefit of the network; generally, a post is made for the poster’s own benefit (which is usually vain, as in vanity). I imagine a room full of people shouting, not at each other or at anyone in particular, but just into the air. That’s what the untargeted messages in the feed are. I don’t think it’s a person’s fault for posting noise. I think it’s the environment’s fault for encouraging it.

There’s also the potential effect on our self-esteem. We naturally compare our lives to what we see in the feed. When people only (selectively) post their best moments, and we’re bombarded with that, it can leave us feeling discontent. We then, for whatever reason, make similar posts of our own. And it becomes a toxic cycle.

Make it healthier

How do we filter out the noise? What do quality interactions online even look like?

I tried to figure that out. I wanted less clutter, less maintenance, and less vanity. A site I could check once or twice a week without having ninety-nine new notifications. I didn’t want a distraction; just a simple tool to make my relationships even better. This is what I came up with.

Basics

  1. Minimal feeds and profiles. 
    Reduce noise, silent spectating (stalking), life comparisons, and obsession with public image.
  2. Content decay.
    Encourage more natural (even unfiltered) conversations with self-deleting messages.
  3. Reach your entire network. 
    Show important content to everyone. Don’t allow algorithms to decide who sees what.
  4. Collaborative photo albums.
    Create one album for everyone at an event (friends and strangers).

Privacy

  1. No selling personal data.
    Withology will eventually incorporate some “in-app” purchases and maybe a subscription plan to add or extend features.
  2. Privacy from Withology.
    Withology doesn’t gather much data about you. Since it’s not ad-based, it doesn’t try to profile you or track your habits across the internet.
  3. Privacy for healthier relationships.
    Most content is hidden from anyone not involved. If you want to know what someone did last weekend: you should ask. Make it an excuse to grab lunch or make a phone call.
  4. Privacy from the world.
    There isn’t a people search. If you want your friends to find you, tell (or email, or text) them a link to your profile. Withology is a tool for active relationships. (If you can’t bring yourself to re-engage in communication with someone, consider what benefit you get from being their friend on a social network.)

To sum it all up

Withology aims to be a healthier network for you and your friends. Everything can be summed up with a few core principles.

  1. Show what’s most important by reducing noise.
  2. Bring people together with tools that facilitate offline interactions.
  3. Protect privacy from advertisers, friends, and even the site itself. Withology doesn’t need (or want) to know much about you. No offense.

TL;DR Get with it.