Cause they want you to have a reason so you can log in and (1) they can track you and (2) you are one step closer to participating.<p>Really though I hate the “new” interface of reddit where, with my neurodivergence, I am greatly distressed by the ads blending with content.
Answering the immediate question: KPIs. The company is prepping for an IPO 2H2023,[1] trying to juice engagement, advertising, and revenue stats, and is well down the enshittification track: <<a href="https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/21/potemkin-ai/#hey-guys" rel="nofollow">https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/21/potemkin-ai/#hey-guys</a>> (Doctorow's describing a different site, but the dynamic is identical in cause and consequence.)<p>As to what to do about it:<p>- I'm pretty sure RES (Reddit Enhancement Suite) will kill this. Even if it doesn't, it's worth using regardless. You'll also want to visit old.reddit.com rather than the default site. <<a href="https://redditenhancementsuite.com/" rel="nofollow">https://redditenhancementsuite.com/</a>><p>- Stop using Reddit. I largely have despite investing over a decade in a reasonably-useful-to-me bloggish subreddit. Cakeday threads are increasingly ironic. <<a href="https://teddit.net/r/dredmorbius/comments/ywhz7s/happy_cakeday_rdredmorbius_today_youre_9/" rel="nofollow">https://teddit.net/r/dredmorbius/comments/ywhz7s/happy_caked...</a>><p>- If you have to use it, go through the Teddit front end: <<a href="https://teddit.net/about" rel="nofollow">https://teddit.net/about</a>> You can simply replace "reddit.com" with "teddit.net" in any URL, or install a redirector browser extension such as LibRedirect: <<a href="https://github.com/libredirect/browser_extension">https://github.com/libredirect/browser_extension</a>><p>- Look to alternative discussion sites. I'm a member of (though fairly rare participant these days) Tildes <<a href="https://tildes.net" rel="nofollow">https://tildes.net</a>>. There's a Federated Reddit alternative as well, Lemmy: <<a href="https://github.com/LemmyNet/lemmy">https://github.com/LemmyNet/lemmy</a>>. Probably others.<p>- Spend your time more wisely. I'm finding online content vastly unrewarding in general, with few exceptions. Wikipedia for reference, and a few other informational sites. I'll check text-only news (there was a great HN discussion on this a few weeks back: <<a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35313232" rel="nofollow">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35313232</a>> based on <<a href="https://blog.wturrell.co.uk/text-only-news-websites/" rel="nofollow">https://blog.wturrell.co.uk/text-only-news-websites/</a>>). Mostly though I rely on articles, books, or (carefully curated) podcasts.<p>Hacker News is a quite-good link aggregator. If you want even more discriminating selections, check the curated collections:<p>- "best" <<a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/best" rel="nofollow">https://news.ycombinator.com/best</a>><p>- "invited" <<a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/invited" rel="nofollow">https://news.ycombinator.com/invited</a>><p>- or "pool" (2nd-chance submissions) <<a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/pool" rel="nofollow">https://news.ycombinator.com/pool</a>><p>You can also use Algolia Search to show the top items from the past week, month, or year, according to HN's vote and activity stats, by submitting a blank search and selecting the appropriate date range:<p>- Best of past week: <<a href="https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=pastWeek&page=0&prefix=false&query=&sort=byPopularity&type=story" rel="nofollow">https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=pastWeek&page=0&prefix=fal...</a>><p>- Best of past month: <<a href="https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=pastMonth&page=0&prefix=false&query=&sort=byPopularity&type=story" rel="nofollow">https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=pastMonth&page=0&prefix=fa...</a>><p>- Best of past year: <<a href="https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=pastYear&page=0&prefix=false&query=&sort=byPopularity&type=story" rel="nofollow">https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=pastYear&page=0&prefix=fal...</a>><p>(You can also specify your own preferred date bounds, though that's more awkward.)<p>HN's discussion quality varies, but it's well above the general level of Reddit, popular subreddits most particularly.<p>________________________________<p>Notes:<p>1. "Reddit aims for IPO in second half of 2023 - The Information" <<a href="https://neuters.de/technology/reddit-aims-ipo-second-half-2023-information-2023-02-14/" rel="nofollow">https://neuters.de/technology/reddit-aims-ipo-second-half-20...</a>>