SilberWitch on Nostr: Followers are lindy. Not only the concept, but especially the recommendation lists ...
Followers are lindy.
Not only the concept, but especially the recommendation lists people use. Once you get on the list, you stay on the list (even if your account is dormant), but it's nearly-impossible for someone arriving later, to get on the same list. Also very difficult to create a new list and not just end up with the same people on it, as everyone only knows the same 100 people, or so. New lists tend to just be shorter versions of the old lists.
That's why they're an inefficient system for discovering content. There's no obvious, direct connection between the quality or relevance of some content and the number of followers of the signing npub, beyond being proof of not-spam.
Only a system that recommends specific events, rather than people, can discover novel, personally-relevant content. And that is only possible if the event-content is high-signal enough, that it can be worth evaluating. If you are choosing between five people saying GM, you will always tend toward the GM from the most-popular person (unless you are me and naturally contrarian).
Not only the concept, but especially the recommendation lists people use. Once you get on the list, you stay on the list (even if your account is dormant), but it's nearly-impossible for someone arriving later, to get on the same list. Also very difficult to create a new list and not just end up with the same people on it, as everyone only knows the same 100 people, or so. New lists tend to just be shorter versions of the old lists.
That's why they're an inefficient system for discovering content. There's no obvious, direct connection between the quality or relevance of some content and the number of followers of the signing npub, beyond being proof of not-spam.
Only a system that recommends specific events, rather than people, can discover novel, personally-relevant content. And that is only possible if the event-content is high-signal enough, that it can be worth evaluating. If you are choosing between five people saying GM, you will always tend toward the GM from the most-popular person (unless you are me and naturally contrarian).