Is it possible to sort posts chronologically?

I love this site, but I haven't used it in a long while, & I don't remember not being able to sort posts chronologically.

For me, the beauty (or at least what makes it interesting & worthwhile) of this site's the uncurated nature of it. I don't need an algorithm.

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PirateMonkeyCabinet · 36-40, M Best Comment

No. It used to be possible, but the powers that be decided they know what we want better than we know what we want ourselves, so they removed that option when they implemented the algorithm.

FCNantes · 22-25, M

@PirateMonkeyCabinet Damn [pronounced dame].

I'm curious when this change happened, if you happen to know, but yeah, that sucks, so that's me done, then.

It's a pity, too, given that my history goes back a decade, before EP shut down.

(Ultra)Modern life continues to displease me.

Thanks for the reply!

PirateMonkeyCabinet · 36-40, M

@FCNantes Can't remember, but it's been like this a long while. Did a very quick check of the admin announcement group and the earliest I find is an announcement July 10th 2022 that has a picture of the algorithmic "customize feed" thingymabob. I think it might have been shortly before that announcement that the algorithm was instated.

A lot of people have aired their displeasure at the change and asked that chronological, unfiltered feeds at the very least be an option for those that want it... but yeah, they've made up their mind and don't care.

Thanks for BC.

DeWayfarer · 61-69, M

I should make a post about this. Apparently few know this site very well, including the old time users.

There is a way to get posts chronologically ordered, yet only for one of the fourteenth main categories.

This is my reply to someone else...

Click the "forums" button, then select "All topics" on the top of the right side.

Or...

Select any one of the fourteenth categories on the left side, say "People & family" and once again "People & family on the very top of the right side.

That will give a list of all posts that is from ALL subgroups of that category. Basically like a feed for everything under it.

Swiping downward will refresh all the posts or clicking on the title of the category again will refresh the whole category.

Just like a feed for just that one category.

If you get bored with that main category go through the process again yet select a different main category say "Politics & News"

Again there's fourteen main categories. Select the one's you want.

Personally I avoid "Religion & spirituality". Even though I have most of the christian groups muted.

Back on the forums button you might notice on right side twelve different types of feelings under the All topics.

If you want posts by only one type of feeling say "Asking" for like the old questions groups, you can get a feed like that for all posts in all categories.

Again it's the same on refreshing.

Must say the "Asking" post type isn't like the old questions feed. Few actually use it for some odd reason.

Probably, like you, most don't select it when posting.

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DeWayfarer · 61-69, M

@PirateMonkeyCabinet even after you have mentioned most of the separate aspects there are both legal constraints as well as software demands that are affecting the interface of this site that you know nothing about.

What you want just isn't feasible. The old design absolutely had to go. I have talk about googles demands before. That by itself affects advertising. Yet Google itself refused to index this site because of the old design!

Think about that. No indexing means little advertising !

There's more going on the legal aspects as well. Such as the COPPA aspects (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act ). That effects the design of ALL sites. They simply had to get rid of many of the groups because of just that. Easier to redesign the whole interface.

People are complaining about FB and even YouTube because of all the changes they had to do just due to COPPA! And those two sites are millions of times bigger than this site.

Please remember that this site was under heavy scrutiny because of what happened on EP!

They had to change it for multiple reasons. Yet still be unique enough to be different than most other sites.

PirateMonkeyCabinet · 36-40, M

@DeWayfarer Firstly, I did mention legality, and some of the stuff I mentioned could be considered under software demands, and even so I had the "and more" part. The points wasn't to list every single, possible thing, but as I said, to say that I am aware there is more to it.

I totally disagree on the feasibility. Yes, indexing matters, but as far as I've seen there are certainly ways that could have provided an algorithmic feed and an optional chronological without preventing indexing (while conforming to both technical and legal demands).

That said, seeing as this is just leading into us butting heads and with replies now devolving into equivalents of "you know nothing, I know best" statements, I see little value in continuing this discussion and spending time on going into deeper details.

I have given the OP my answer. Have a good day.

DeWayfarer · 61-69, M

@PirateMonkeyCabinet

𝓗𝓪𝓿𝓮 𝓪 𝓰𝓸𝓸𝓭 𝓭𝓪𝔂! 😊

Spoiledbrat · F

I think they're trying to bring more posts to our feed. It's taken me awhile to get used to it but I like it.

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Spoiledbrat · F

If you want to expand what posts you see in your feed just interact with posts you like. You'll see more of them. You can add or follow people whose posts you like. You will see more of them. @PirateMonkeyCabinet

Spoiledbrat · F

@PirateMonkeyCabinet I promise.

PirateMonkeyCabinet · 36-40, M

@Spoiledbrat That's not what I (and a fair few others) want from the feed at all. I want to see everything, unfiltered, in chronological order. No algorithm. I want to decide for myself what posts I want to see, visit and interact with.

In order to actually find things I want to interact with I need to actually see those posts in the first place. And when the algorithm hides those posts, then I can't easily see them, which in turns means I can't realistically interact with it. Even so, I shouldn't have to interact with a whole bunch of posts I don't want to interact with in order to get a tiny chance of getting posts I do want in my feed.

As I said earlier, some people get shown more posts than others, and while the amount of interaction has some effect it has become clear there are a lot of other things to that influences how much or how little you get. Some people interact a fair bit but still get a very limited selection of posts in their feed. Some of us have tried a bunch of experiments to see if I we could improve our own feeds with very little success. At times some people got shown 40 posts from a time period, while others were only shown 4 posts from the exact same time period.

It's perfectly fine that some people like the algorithm, I'm not judging anyone who likes it. If you like it this way, then I'm happy for you. That good. I however don't like it. I know what I want, and this feed we have now is not it.

bookerdana · M

The Filter button evidently isn't attached to anything useful,so no

Spoiledbrat · F

Do you press "new"?

Renaci · 36-40

No it's not possible cause the admins won't do it.

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