this post was submitted on 26 Aug 2023
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I mean I know this is painfully pedantic but even simply sorting by new is algorithmic
The implied difference is if someone or even you know how the algorithm works, which for "new" is relatively straightforward.
Yeah
Is a relatively straight forward command to a database and hell, I'm guessing extremely readable by your average Joe.
If you’re talking SQL, it would be
SELECT * FROM posts ORDER BY dateposted LIMIT 100.There are a lot of flavors of SQL each with their own syntax. I've been using Microsoft's SQL now for 3 years and the syntax I used is correct for that.
So is anything a programmable computer does.
When people say algorithms on social media they usually never refer to the simple everyday algorithms that are easy to understand, they always use that word to refer to the proprietary ones designed to feed you content based on machine learning and data fed to them by the company.
Though yes sorting by new, or activity, or even by vote count is still in algorithm, just a much simpler one that almost never employs machine learning.
Yeah exactly, most people understand to some degree that they are being manipulated by ""The Algorithm"" and would like an alternative service. Responding to that sentiment with "actually all sorting is technically algorithmic" is not the way to make a new Mastodon convert.
I’m aware. my comment was more for the folks who don’t know that an algorithm is simply a set of steps to achieve something specific