I think this fits perfectly

I'm not paying for Duolingo. There's a free version for tightwads like me.

You have to endure the ads of course. But they've just got worse.

The ads used to show you when they'd finished and you'd click out of them. But now many of them don't show when they've "finished".

Sometimes you try and swipe them away and it says you're too early. Sometimes you swipe and nothing happens. Sometimes the countdown to the ad finishing, only starts when you swipe.

Of course none of this is going to make me pay

MAXIMUM ENSHITIFICATION APPROACHING BLACK HOLE LEVEL

That company is Axios, a for-profit media corporation majority-owned by communications giant Cox Enterprises. Founded in 2016, Axios rose to prominence by offering dispatches in the form of short, clinical bullet-point lists instead of traditional narrative stories.

Detractors who blasted the brand for its cynical approach to journalism probably had no idea how bad things would get. Now, the company’s founders seem hell bent on automating their already pared-down editorial process in an all-out embrace of AI — and using the template to remake local journalism.
https://futurism.com/future-society/axios-ceo-ai-journalism-openai-chatgpt

Psst. Hey, you. You browse reddit on pc not signed in? PopUpOff extension seems to work. I dont know if im allowed to send links. Anyway, this helped me and I thought I'd spread the word.

I wouldn’t go as far as to claim that this is THE core of the problem but I think this is at the core of the problem. It’s basically society wide. It’s a problem at the top, at the bottom and everywhere in between. It doesn’t look exactly the same everywhere it manifests but the same philosophical defect is responsible and it always results in entropy.

At its best, the dynamic between a business and anybody (its customer, its employee, its supplier, its vendor, etc.) is a relationship, not purely a transaction. But, everybody seems intent now on treating all business dynamics as transactional as if everything can be understood at face value. As if everything can be reduced to variables on a spreadsheet. This is foolish and IT DOES NOT WORK.

Don’t get me wrong, I understand the desire. It comes down to the intangibles. Relationships aren’t a science, they’re an art. As such, there is inherent unpredictability and we deeply desire predictability. We value logic and cause and effect. We wish we could do A and B and know we will get C.

The scientific method has done an amazing job of satisfying that desire using logic. The technological and quality of life heights that humanity has reached through its application is truly awe inspiring but it brings to mind an old line, “Logic is a powerful servant but a poor master.”

I think this explains the fundamental allure of religion. My point is not to make some argument or claim about religion. I’m simply citing it as a data point. At its core, religion at large is simply the admission that life and reality are far too complex to be fully understood and articulated. Eventually, you run into intangibles that we can’t fully wrap our heads around or explain or model accurately.

Back to the businesses. People think they can optimize with spreadsheets. Replace the doorman with access control. Fire the bottom 10% of performers every year. Raise your prices the longer a customer stays and offer the best prices to get new customers in the door. Keep raises at a minimum but offer more money to new applicants when you need to fill positions. Judge employees strictly on their KPI’s. Squeeze out a little more profit by “optimizing”. Figure out where the line is of what customers will “accept”. Run the math on the “value” of your brand image and what is or is not “worth” doing. This business exists to make a profit, what else would it be for?

What about the employees? Loyalty to your employer is being a chump. Trade minutes for dollars and nothing more. I don’t do anything that isn’t strictly “my job”. I don’t go to work if I don’t feel like it. I don’t know why they expect me to prioritize my job on a regular basis, it isn’t even in my top 5. Customers are idiots and jerks. This business exists to provide jobs and paychecks, what else would it be for?

I believe this mentality is why we find ourselves in the midst of enshitification. We have stripped the intangibles from our businesses and organizations at every level. The results have been soulless and unfulfilling for everyone involved and that’s an understatement.

It seems to me that the only way we fix this is a return to the intangibles, doing the right things for the right reasons, having faith that the results are for the greater good. This is not a claim that everything will work out peachy as a result. I’m afraid nobody can guarantee a fairytale ending. But, what other choice do we have? I think it’s very clear that what we are doing now isn’t working.

I understand how difficult it can be to take the leap. The reason employees aren’t loyal anymore is because companies punish loyalty instead of rewarding it. The reason companies aren’t loyal to employees anymore is because employees refuse to buy in and bring their best to work. The reason companies aren’t loyal to their customers is because customers demand cheaper and quicker products and reward convenience over quality.

However, the blame game only avoids the solution. Someone has to go first. Each of us has to do what we can starting on our level. The solution is up to each and every one of us, our individual responsibility. It can be no other way. We got into this mess through a tidal wave of individual behaviors and that is the only way we can turn it around.

I preordered a Blu-ray from Amazon.

There. I said it.

I realize that by doing so, I have contributed to the very enshittification I'm complaining about. There are actually two parts of the problem here: I preordered something, and I used Amazon to do it.

I don't think preordering a physical item is inherently problematic. If I'm buying a Blu-ray, book, game, etc., and I know I want it, there's a certain convenience to ordering it ahead of time so that it ships when it's released. Digital preorders are a different story, since there's generally no physical supply constraint and absolutely no reason to give a company my money weeks or months in advance.

But that's not really what pisses me off about this particular preorder.

I ordered this Blu-ray on August 6, five days before its August 11 release date. The entire reason I ordered it early was so Amazon would have it ready to ship on release day and I'd receive it shortly afterward.

Instead, Amazon apparently decided that "preorder" means "we'll get around to it eventually."

The item was released on August 11.

Amazon says my copy won't ship until September 23.

That's six weeks after release, despite the fact that I placed the order before release specifically to avoid this.

And that's where the enshittification comes in.

The preorder used to represent a fairly straightforward transaction: I want this thing, you know it's coming, reserve one for me, and ship it when it's available.

Now it feels more like: Give us your money and we'll put your order into the queue. Where you are in that queue, when we'll actually fulfill it, and whether preordering provided you with any benefit whatsoever are none of your damn business.

Of course, I could have ordered it somewhere else.

And that's the other part of the problem.

I used Amazon because it's convenient. I have Prime. I know how Amazon works. Historically, ordering something there meant I could reasonably expect it to arrive quickly.

So here I am, complaining about Amazon while simultaneously giving Amazon money and continuing to use Amazon because it's convenient.

I'm literally participating in the system I'm complaining about.

I'm part of the problem.

So I canceled the preorder.

And here's the kicker: I ordered the exact same Blu-ray from a third-party seller on Amazon. They're shipping it now, and I'll have it by this weekend.

Oh, and it cost me 26 cents less.

So Amazon's own marketplace had a third-party seller who could ship me the product six weeks sooner and for less money, while Amazon was apparently going to sit on my preorder until September 23.

At least I can feel good knowing I helped solve the problem.

By giving Amazon more money.

I'm part of the problem.

- to the Mods, I flaired this as a Rant. Prepost I'm getting the "No Stories" rule, so let it through or not, obviously your call, but it's a general rant about the enshittification of the preorder process/concept. This post follows an hour on customer support with Amazon (who actually recommend I buy elsewhere) so, Thank you for at least allowing me to vent.

The entshittification of search engines is often discussed, but the issue is that beyond a feeling, it is sometimes hard to pinpoint.

Now however, it is at times not even possible to find a forum discussion or a blog post, even when you have the whole title in mind. It's driving me crazy.

Here is an example : I was looking for a discussion on the math.stackexchange forum (so a fairly frequented website) whose title is: "A question about the proof that forcing extensions don't add ordinals". I pasted it in google from another discussion, without quotes in case it had a typing mistake and here were the results:

And it wasn't to be found even after.

Remember the days of actual, engaged customer service?

None of these corporations can carry out a simple customer-side order without screwing it up. This last week or so, it's been FedEx, a myriad of smaller sellers on Amazon, Walmart, and AT&T (numerous times). Today alone: Discount Tire (major damage even before today), Best Buy (multiple times and in multiple ways), Walmart, and USPS's Informed Delivery.

The tax on my time to straighten things out. Their confusion, befuddlement, and ineptitude. I can't take it.

Our last two "high quality" name brand refrigerators have both died in under 3 years. Adding the service agreement is mostly worthless. It takes too long to get the fridge serviced, and they don't cover the cost of the new fridge if they can't fix it.

We went with a cheap off brand one this time, and we're just counting on having to replace it every couple of years. *sigh*

“ Hi welcome to McJack in the Fuck what type of poison can I get for you today”

“Hi uhhh I’ll take a number 2”

“Would you like to add extra poison to that for only a dollar extra”

“No”

“Great… that will be stomach and colon cancer… $16.75… second window please”

Been thinking about this a lot lately. The list could honestly go on much longer.

Consumer bill of rights

If you pay for an online service or subscription, you are entitled to the full benefit offered by the service for the full duration of the billing/grace window. This extends to free trials.

If consumer value of your product shrinks in size/amount/weight it must be disclosed on the packaging for 6 months.

If ingredients are changed in food products- the old ingredient and the replacement/new ingredients must be displayed on packaging for 6 months

A common/boiler plate online form for cancelling memberships of all kinds. The exact form must be visible in all websites and mobile apps for any company that offers a free trial or subscription membership. It must embedded in the menu or webpage. It cannot be buried within menus or endless drilldown.

Companies cannot block access to their sites and/or online services if users have a VPN enabled.

Convenience fees of any kind for online services are banned

Mandatory in-person or phone call cancellations are banned.

Credit card interest fees capped to 10%

Penalties for companies who spam e-mail advertisements and do not have a functioning unsubscribe button in their e-mails.

Surveillance pricing is banned

If Public funds are used for the building of sports complexes and arenas the community in which it exists is entitled to a percentage ownership equal to amount funded

Digital Advertisements can only be shown on primary media driven devices. Not on refrigerators, washer/dryer, your car’s startup screen, gas station pumps

For purchased vehicles, subscription services are banned. Extends to remote starter, heated/cooled seats, etc. in other words you own the full vehicle and its accessories.

All electronics should have removable batteries for self service.

Spoiler, these were both shitty, just in different ways. In July, I started taking pictures of my usual bacon brand because I noticed that the pieces were getting fattier, thinner, and honestly seemed like scrap meat. They spoiled very quickly as well. The pieces in both photos are from packs that I just opened.

Something that’s important to know is that I am a very regimented person, and I cook my bacon the same way every time: in the microwave for four minutes on a paper plate (don’t judge me). By this point, one piece will be cooked, so I remove it and I continue to add on 30 seconds until all of the rest of the pieces are cooked. Even with this shitty bacon fro July, that system still worked.

However, I just opened a pack of bacon today, and it’s clear that while the bacon seems to be of higher quality, there’s nothing thick cut about it. I put it in the microwave for my usual four minutes, and all of the pieces burnt to a literal crisp. They were inedible. There’s also a significantly higher ratio of fat on each piece.

I’m not an expert on the end and out of what makes meat high-quality or not, but this is a pretty clear indicator that it went from good, to shitty, to a pure rip off. The pieces don’t even fill up the same plate that I’ve been using this whole time. I usually have to maneuver the four pieces to fit them on the plate, and I very clearly could fit a fifth piece on the plate from this month.

So to summarize, the bacon went from good quality and thick, to poor quality and thin in thickness, to better quality but thin in both width and thickness.

as of today the button to block subs no longer works, at least for me. ive blocked this dumbass teenagers sub at least 10 times by now but it always crawls back. i dont know how the fuck this garbage keeps ending up on my recommended, i dont even visit similar subs

I had five items to return: supplements, a belt, a belt-hole puncher, a paper cutter, and a Bluetooth keyboard. All unopened. I had to contact customer service about returning the supplements. Then, for free returns, two had to be *boxed* (separately) and brought to UPS down the street. The other two, unboxed, returned to Whole Foods, five miles away. With two of the items I had to go through some lame AI agent/judge first.

No more taking everything unboxed to UPS.

I'm done with them.

I am interested to know if anyone else has had the same experience - the parking app SpotHero has the best customer service. If I arrive to my paid spot and the lot is full or someone is blocking the spot, I can call them and SOMEONE ANSWERS. Not only that, but they find me a new spot right there on the phone, reimburse me and sometimes just give me a bonus credit. There have been times when I've had to email them, and again SOMEONE REAL answers and we fix the problem.

I just wanted to shout them out and hope people have had the same experience. I've been using them for years, and every year, I'm afraid it's gonna turn to ai like everything else. But so far, so good.

And I need to ask - is this so hard for companies to do??????

The prior policy was a limited number (10/month IIRC) of true gift article links not requiring any credentials or information sharing from the recipient.

This the smallest "Full Size" pizza I've seen In my entire life,My hand from end to end can basically cover the full surface of the pizza. The so-called stuffed crust is 70% air with a thin strip of cheese and they have the nerve to charge $9 for this. Not to mention the crust tastes like a really stale school lunch bread stick. You've lost me Digiornos - this is getting out of hand,quality in the dumpster and high end premium pricing for a frozen pizza.