[HN Gopher] Historical code from reddit.com
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Historical code from reddit.com
Author : tech234a
Score : 108 points
Date : 2023-05-31 19:30 UTC (3 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (github.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (github.com)
| mvexel wrote:
| Ha! I was hoping to see some web.py / Aaron Swartz code. This is
| cool too, though.
| htrp wrote:
| from some of the numbers I've seen.
|
| new reddit is only 11% of total users, old reddit is only 12% at
| this point
| mohsinulhaq wrote:
| Was it just open sourced or was it already there?
| prepend wrote:
| I wish GitHub made it clear when the repo was created. The
| commit history comes from git and frequently predates the
| GitHub creation when imported from somewhere else.
|
| The api shows created_at as 2008-06-18 but this seems like
| relevant info that should display in the ui.
| piperswe wrote:
| It's been there for a long time.
| redhal wrote:
| It's been there since at least 2018
| https://web.archive.org/web/20180201224409/https://github.co...
| bpicolo wrote:
| It was OSS from 2008 through 2017 [0]
|
| [0]https://web.archive.org/web/20120501073813/http://blog.red
| di...
| [deleted]
| jrflowers wrote:
| This reminds me that LiveJournal is also open source!
|
| https://stat.livejournal.com/doc/server/lj.index.html
| rvba wrote:
| Why in 2023 it takes like 4 seconds for every site to load on a
| mobile phone? Does anyone on reddit even use reddit on phone?
| They dont know that their page takes forever to load? Or do they
| just want to get rid of users that try to read stuff and make it
| some sort of a picture-based site? Seriously did anyone there
| ever even try to optimize loading ? I go to /r/askreddit - open a
| random thread - and it takes few seconds to load. Compare it on
| mobile to old i.reddit that loaded instantly even with thoustands
| of comments.
|
| I tried like 10 different reddit apps. None of them has the look
| and feel of the light-weight i.reddit did. I dont even mention
| that those apps often dont have tabs + history cannot be shared
| with browser.. Seriously why there is no app that behaves the way
| i.reddit behaved?
|
| I also dont understand how the really-really old reddit "frame"
| (top 10 upvoted comments on left side of the screen) died. This
| was just so damn good. Internet supposedly moved forward due to
| "security", but why there cant be some sort of a browser plugin
| that can display the original site on 90% of the screen and top
| 10 reddit comments (i.reddit style with nesting) on the left?
| Lammy wrote:
| For an actively-maintained project, see the code that runs
| rDrama-dot-net (sup /h/slackernews lol) and watchpeopledie-dot-tv
| https://fsdfsd.net/rDrama/rDrama
| dabluecaboose wrote:
| Unfortunately, it's based on new reddit and a UX nightmare on
| desktop.
| jasonladuke0311 wrote:
| It's unbelievable how user-hostile old Reddit has become on
| mobile. Overriding the back button to remove the referring page
| from history. Modals popping up after x amount of browsing, etc.
| dralley wrote:
| The day "old reddit" stops being a usable option is the day I
| stop using reddit entirely.
| Bluecobra wrote:
| Same here. When Digg came out with their v4 redesign I switched
| to Reddit and never looked back. Though now I prefer HN more
| and use Reddit less these days, so it won't be too much of a
| loss to me.
| twelvechairs wrote:
| Whats the best alternative after leaving reddit though?
| jchw wrote:
| Agreed. Though at this point, I basically don't unless it shows
| up in search results anyways.
| paulddraper wrote:
| As another comment here points out...why is old reddit better?
|
| Performance.
|
| _Just get new reddit design to load content as quickly and
| 80%+ of the complaints will go away._
| Arrath wrote:
| I think you and I are far from alone in that sentiment.
| dagurp wrote:
| They would have killed it a long time ago otherwise.
|
| I would keep using Reddit sync I guess.
| proto-n wrote:
| They just confirmed killing 3rd party apps with
| unreasonable pricing
| dc-programmer wrote:
| This may be an unpopular opinion, but I prefer new Reddit
| when I'm on my phone (which nowadays is my primary causal
| scrolling device). I think part of the reason people stick to
| old Reddit is because they haven't ripped off the nostalgia
| band-aid yet
| stanac wrote:
| How do you deal with "Please open in app to see all
| comments" and other similar bs? If you don't want to
| install app and/or login only old.reddit works on mobile
| web.
| dc-programmer wrote:
| Admittedly those are bullshit. They do go away if you
| create an account and login though
| RosanaAnaDana wrote:
| 100%
|
| The real value of reddit goes down annually.
|
| They got rid of the boobies and kept the gore and violence.
|
| Its mostly a machine for manufacturing Marvel & SW fandom.
| anoonmoose wrote:
| I don't know what Reddit you're seeing but I assure you
| there are still plenty of thriving NSFW subreddits. I might
| even say tons. I've seen a few get deleted here and there
| but it was always for pretty specific, targeted reasons.
| ezekg wrote:
| Especially since they're trying to kill third-party apps a la
| Twitter:
| https://old.reddit.com/r/apolloapp/comments/13ws4w3/had_a_ca...
| theturtletalks wrote:
| Wasn't their a post linking this on the front page and now
| it's gone?
| ezekg wrote:
| https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36141083
| 2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote:
| The interest rate squeeze is making everything so much fun to
| use. :)
| jjoonathan wrote:
| It's absolutely wild that all these years later new reddit is
| still so bad that a sizable portion of the overall traffic
| fights the defaults to use old reddit. Users never fight
| defaults... unless you screw up as badly as new reddit did.
| AlecSchueler wrote:
| Users never fight defaults, unless you provide an easy and
| officially supported way to revert.
| jjoonathan wrote:
| Is the official old reddit setting still broken, forcing
| users to either rewrite URLs themselves or install a plugin
| to do it for them?
| NineStarPoint wrote:
| No it mostly works, but does revert and need to be
| rechecked seemingly randomly. Used to be more frequently
| actually, now is only every few months for me.
| loeg wrote:
| Nah.
| AlecSchueler wrote:
| Personally I re-wrote it once and my cookie has has my
| back for a few years right now, but YMMV depending on how
| often you change browsers, delete cookies etc.
|
| If you're doing that often or if you're part of the "HN
| Crowd" it should be trivial to write a quick bookmarklet
| to do the re-write for you.
| tmpz22 wrote:
| Why bother making a good UX?
|
| The best UX is usually contradictory to monetization.
|
| The best UX takes a ton of extra work.
|
| Why not let the Executives in Sales and Growth erect the
| walls and moats that keep your users stuck in place?
| ravenstine wrote:
| The best thing for Reddit's business would be to hide
| communities as much as possible and turn their app into a
| version of TikTok that throws nothing but ads disguised as
| viral videos in front of users. They probably want to do
| this badly.
|
| Actually, what if someone came up with an app that had no
| user created content whatsoever and was just an infinite-
| scroll of corporate ads? I bet it would make millions.
| delfinom wrote:
| Did you know there are two new reddits?
|
| If you login as a user you see comments in a different style
| than the guest view of comments. The guest view of comments
| on new new reddit is even more awful.
| justapassenger wrote:
| I've started using reddit only after they rolled out new. I
| hate old UI, and i've tried it many times.
|
| People don't like when someone changes their toys. But that
| doesn't mean that new toy is a screw up, it's not something
| you got used to.
| obviouslynotme wrote:
| It has little to do with the look and feel. Loading a "new"
| reddit page feels like going on a 2010s news page without
| an adblocker. The page takes 15 seconds or more to load.
| Elements are shifting around during that time. If I'm not
| logged in, I get a screengrabbing beg ad to install their
| apps.
|
| Reddit code is trash. The old version is just much simpler
| and therefore less annoying. If it weren't for the fact
| that the smaller subreddits have lots of value, no one
| would put up with it.
| internetter wrote:
| > feels like going on a 2010s news page without an
| adblocker
|
| I don't think it's any better now...
| szatkus wrote:
| I used Reddit before the new UI and... also prefer the new
| one. It's much better for browsing funny memes. But I don't
| use Reddit for "serious" stuff. There are subreddits for
| topics I'm interested in, but I would spend most of my day
| correcting people if I was subscribed there, because they
| are so bad. Funny cats are ok though.
| sohex wrote:
| I still distinctly remember the survey they had post new
| reddit launch. After answering it as accurately as I could
| given the rather limited options available and submitting it
| I was given a response of 'sorry you're so change averse,
| suck it up'. Obviously paraphrasing, but the idea that
| someone could only dislike the new UX because they were
| change averse has stuck with me as being particularly brain
| dead.
| ok_computer wrote:
| Old reddit + darkreader +ublock origin extension on Firefox is
| my preference.
|
| I'd like to know others' opinions on darkreader: is it a great
| security threat. I perused the information it discloses it gets
| access to but have not seen many online criticisms.
| MilStdJunkie wrote:
| Huh. I thought I was the only one. The new one just seems like
| a dictionary illustration for Information Poor Interface.
| dabluecaboose wrote:
| I still think that tree-style comments and voting are far, far
| superior to old-style forums. Especially for hobby information or
| someone looking for info years after the fact.
|
| I have spent way too much time following 3 separate conversations
| in a forum thread looking for the specific information I want.
|
| With reddit (and HackerNews) it's so much easier to track
| individual sub-threads and see what's going on, and the voting
| system (while it can and does lead to echo chambers) is also
| great for promoting better content, IMO.
| scythe wrote:
| On the contrary, they're better for _browsing_ , but much worse
| for _participating_. Reddit 's key innovation was making the
| site attractive to viewers who weren't yet members of the
| community. It used to be that you joined a community when you
| found it and people had to be asked to lurk -- _" lurk moar"_
| even became a meme -- until reddit came around and people
| browsed /r/funny (which was actually good once) for months
| before getting an account.
|
| The downside is that every discussion feels like a race. Trying
| to have a conversation on Reddit or HN is vastly more stressful
| than it ever was on old forums -- even compared to places where
| people were screaming at each other. You have six hours to get
| your point across before the thread dies. There's a tendency
| for unproductive one-on-ones to occur that wouldn't be possible
| with traditional threads.
|
| But the upside is that Reddit is (so far) the best place to
| find out whether I should try the new cookies at Trader Joe's
| or whether some off-brand of iPhone cables are reliable.
| dabluecaboose wrote:
| I disagree that they're necessarily worse for participating.
| The issues of following a popular forum thread would still
| make it obnoxious to participate in the conversation. And in
| a forum, when two people get into unproductive one-on-ones it
| tends to stifle the entire conversation, because it's put
| right inline with all other posts.
|
| The problem with massive threads, I feel like, still exists
| with forums, but the opposite. It's usually folly to comment
| on a popular thread early on a traditional forum, as your
| comment will just be swept up with all the other excited
| comments. I think the answer to both is to use them for
| smaller communities, which is why I think reddit is best for
| hobby communities and whatnot.
| FullstakBlogger wrote:
| >You have six hours to get your point across before the
| thread dies
|
| It used to take longer for a thread to die, but comments have
| always solidified rather quickly.
|
| This was fine, anyways, because each thread was an archive of
| the state of mind of the people involved at the time. If the
| conversation continues, it should continue in an entirely
| different thread, and if you're new to the conversation, you
| can backtrack over the previous threads to get up to speed
| with everybody else. There was a real hivemind-like (in a
| non-derogatory sense) stream of consciousness that everybody
| could participate in.
|
| This is impossible now, though, because of moderators
| preventing multiple threads subjectively "related" to one
| another being on the first 5-8 pages at once.
|
| Worst of all is the "megathreads", which aggregate literally
| over a hundred links to external sites into a single post,
| where people can't even vote on them individually. The entire
| benefit of the format of Reddit is user-filtered content, so
| you don't have to read literally the entire internet to find
| your way to something useful.
|
| With all the hype around AI, I feel like there is so much
| low-hanging fruit in the realm of "human algorithms" that
| everyone has failed to explore over the last 15ish years of
| stagnation (and decay) in social media. People need useful
| processes and structures, not magic question-answer machines,
| or recommendations based on "who they really are inside."
|
| Just imagine, for instance, if HN allowed you to vote
| specifically on backlinks to previous threads for each
| individual post. As of now, there's no easy way to know how
| far a discussion on a particular topic has advanced in the
| past, and judge whether you're about to say something
| redundant. If users could easily post a related thread and
| get some signal back about whether it was helpful, it would
| occur to them more often to re-post relevant discussions.
| Thread-backlinks competing with fresh comments and other
| links is just too much noise.
|
| If you look at the discussion around the "Clean Code,
| Horrible Performance" article, there is a followup which
| addresses some of the claims the commenters made about the
| original. Then, in the comments for _that_ article (across
| all platforms), you find people claiming that nobody would
| ever actually say those things.
|
| Eventually people are going to realize the UX provided by AI
| isn't actually that great, and rediscover that DAGs are
| really useful.
| winrid wrote:
| Neat, looks like a custom Python framework... was expecting
| Django.
| Lammy wrote:
| RIP aaronsw https://webpy.org/ "(The site was rewritten using
| other tools after being acquired by Conde Nast.)"
| notatoad wrote:
| was reddit ever on webpy? i thought it was lisp back in the
| day before conde nast
| Lammy wrote:
| http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/rewritingreddit
|
| "Over at reddit.com, we rewrote the site from Lisp to
| Python in the past week. It was pretty much done in one
| weekend. (Disclosure: We used my web.py library.) The
| others knew Lisp (they wrote their whole site in it) and
| they knew Python (they rewrote their whole site in it) and
| yet they decided liked Python better for this project. The
| Python version had less code that ran faster and was far
| easier to read and maintain."
| Klonoar wrote:
| Someone would have to correct me if I'm wrong here as my
| history is hazy, but wasn't Reddit _originally_ built in Lisp
| and then ported to Python due to other factors (i.e hard to
| find talent /hard to maintain/speed of iteration/etc)?
|
| Django back then had notable nuances at scale and if you were
| migrating over a codebase in another language I'm not sure it
| would've been a viable thing to entertain.
| mg wrote:
| Could be a fun project to put all the steps outlined in the
| install guide [1] into a single script which turns a fresh Debian
| 12 install into a running Reddit instance.
|
| [1] https://github.com/reddit-archive/reddit/wiki/Install-guide
| Klonoar wrote:
| At the risk of beating a dead horse: one could also say "no" to
| another silo'd instance and instead opt to try running
| something like Lemmy: https://github.com/LemmyNet/lemmy
| lol768 wrote:
| Didn't they stop updating that repo at some point? I'm not sure
| it was at the same time that they replaced the main site with a
| SPA - so it's probably not entirely accurate to say "Old Reddit"
| (which to me means old.reddit.com) is open-source.
|
| Edit:
| https://www.reddit.com/r/changelog/comments/6xfyfg/an_update...
| dang wrote:
| Ok, we've changed the title to say what the page says.
| Submitted title was "Old Reddit is open source".
| lol768 wrote:
| Thanks, dang!
| danjoredd wrote:
| Them going closed source is one of the many, many changes I have
| seen on that site. It used to be somewhat cool back in the day
| but Reddit feels like it is trying as hard as it can be to be
| FaceBook these days. I had to leave because it feels nothing like
| it used to be.
| [deleted]
| voytec wrote:
| (2008)
| mkl95 wrote:
| I've been using old Reddit for a few years, pretty much since I
| found out it was a thing. Judging by their current iteration's
| UX, the code is probably horrific enough that open sourcing it
| would hurt their reputation. As you may know Reddit is owned by
| Conde Nast or some sibling company, and they love outsourcing
| their stuff to bodyshops.
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(page generated 2023-05-31 23:02 UTC)