83 Comments

Substack, please prioritize and stay true to your original mission: a platform for readers and writers, by writers. Why are you trying to be another Instagram?

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I kind of have to agree with you on this one. Everybody trying to keep up with Tik Tok but you don’t need to.

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I instantly BLOCK anyone in my feed that uses this feature. Absolutely not interested because I’m here for writing and authentic community. Many of the users who use the feature are coming from Instagram and TikTok. This is how they interact, draw attention to themselves often through histrionics (poor me!!!! 😭 or look at me !!!! 💃). I’m entirely not interested.

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I only have FACEBOOK and email---stay away from the rest. FACEBOOK soon getting the boot!

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Not going to happen. Ship has sailed. Still a fun place with lots of good article and stories, but the original mission was left behind quite a while ago.

That's mostly the way it is these days. It's not enough to do a core things and do it well. Tech wants to be all things for all people.

I understand the impulse, but it would be nice if a company could resist it, stay focused on being the best in an area.

And Substack is still pretty awesome, must say, but I wish they would put more work into fixing existing bugs instead of always chasing the shiny.

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Update to my comment: now I see this is another step in Substack’s attempt to woo TikTok creators. See this WaPo article: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/05/07/substack-woos-tiktok-creators/

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Boy, I wish there were a way to drop this feature from my notifications. All of the notifications with people "testing" going live makes me seriously consider unsubscribing to certain publications.

Substack is not where I want this kind of content. There are already many homes for it and having it here is not adding to the experience, it's taking away from it.

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You can disable live video notifications following the steps in this article: https://support.substack.com/hc/en-us/articles/30459624942100-How-do-I-stop-receiving-live-video-notifications-on-Substack

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If someone I subscribe to sends me an invite, that is not the same kind of notification we're trying to prevent. Substack is sending those feature emails. You're cutting our noses off despite our faces.

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Don't do that, please. Wanna get blocked? Don't be an opportunist at my expense.

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Is the Live feature available to everyone now? I don't seem to have it yet.

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Hey Behrouz, Live Video is in beta and only available to bestsellers at the moment. If you are interested in early access, you can request it here: https://on.substack.com/survey/1034033

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Then why are you all promoting it like its available for everyone? I'm no expert, but it seems like a weird strategy...

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Hey Katie. Thanks for the response. I've already requested it a couple of weeks ago.

Understandable, but the bestsellers already doing pretty well; how about giving it out to smaller folks so they can turn into bestsellers? Just a thought. 😅

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I wish that this was communicated only to “Best Sellers” then so it’s not confusing to all other substack writers. I was excited to promote my live webinar/masterclass but now I see that this feature is unavailable.

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I find it very frustrating to get promotions about a potentially good feature that I could use to complement but never replace my writing, only to be reminded that it's only available to the "big" publishers. Frankly, I don't give a damn about what the big guys are doing with it ⁹

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Me neither. ☹️

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Me either! Realllly excited to get it — wish this article shared more about when everyone will have it.

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Do we really need this here on Substack? Video consumption just creates a continuous cycle of instant gratification and short dopamine hits just like Instagram.

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Stick to writing etc and stuff the video stuff! You can always put links onto what you want people to have a look at if they wish!

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RemovedOct 17
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crap and utter shoite! Never go in the slop places!

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TikTok acquired Substack if anyone is confused why this platform turned into Social Media overnight.

RIP writers & readers.

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Folks: TikTok did not acquire Substack.

[Update: Although Substack is looking to draw TikTok users to this platform. It doesn’t bode well for individuals looking to promote healthy community and a healthy relationship with social media. Corporate responsibility does not exist.]

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Insert: Superman flying with a puzzled look following a "missed joke" text bubble, GIF.

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Can I connect to this using various livestream platforms like Streamyard? Or is it only internal to the Substack app.

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We're exploring connecting other streaming platforms. Which platforms do you use Streamyard to stream to?

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I'm using it to connect to Youtube and X. One thing I like about it is that it is multistream compatible. You connect to various platforms, then can stream simultaneously to all of them. I'm sure many other products other than Streamyard allow similar. It would be nice if Substack were one of the supported platforms on these tools.

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I would suggest you not irritate the long time blogger Aaron Renn— who may or may not be a “best seller” in your definition of the term

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Restream.io is another multi-streaming platform that's good and I use that and wanted to throw it in the conversation as another platform to keep in mind. Also, if we have access to the internal stream key for live streaming on Substack, I can use that key in my OBS plugin that gives me easy access to multi-stream just in case Substack cannot get a deal with Restream. Hope this info helps. 🤷

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I heartily endorse these comments. There are enough video channels out there. This is a place for the written world A sanctuary for slow reading and depression thinking

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I'm really ticked by the way Substack is becoming dominated by name authors and media figures - who now seem to dominate the Notes feed, too. So much for a platform for specialized authors with narrow niches. Maybe it's time to move to TikTok, or go straight Fediverse.

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Does this mean that Live video is finally available for everyone or is it still a slow roll out because I still do not have the Live feature on the app and I've been waiting patiently for a while for this feature. I even filled out the early access form when that was provided...

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Apparently only available to best sellers. What a crock. Think it's time to move to Tik Tok.

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Esto me recordo a Instagram.

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If Substack’s end game is to become social media, that is certainly not why I came here. Quite the opposite. I came to share my writing, be inspired and learn from other authors. I have no social media accounts because they have all become unrestrained advertising and misinformation platforms masquerading as social hangouts. Likewise, I detest 90% of TV programming because it is shallow, insipid and gratuitously banal. I spend hours reading, researching and writing about topics that I hope readers want to delve into instead of consuming soundbites for my own gratification. TV was the first born of ‘reality programming for the masses’. Social media is its younger, smarter brother. I want no part of it.

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PROTEST. Here to READ & WRITE

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My subscribers enjoyed the live - I think because it was interactive, being outside in the garden, it worked well for everyone

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