I'm noticing the same thing on other people's streams too. - Tamar Weinberg

Don't feel bad. I almost never get a reply on friend feed. I still comment on others stuff and press the like button like a crack addicted monkey in a horrible lab experiment. - MarkCarras

I check friendfeed.com for all people I follow, and I like to participate where I can. Either people subscribe to too many people or they just don't engage anymore. It's like you have to take off your shirt to get attention here lately. I guess FF is past its prime with all the self-serving updates :( - Tamar Weinberg

There's a cycle to FF, I've noticed. Your list gets more diffuse, and less interesting, and you finally notice it, which drives you to parse it down and clear up the noise, then it's good, then it gets full and diffuse again, on and on - anna sauce

If I took off my shirt I would end up with lawsuits for people psychiatric therapy....and burned out eyeballs. :D - MarkCarras

I'm noticing it too and I'm even living it. I just feel less interested. :/ - Shawn Farner

anna, I've removed my noisy services long ago and only share content that I think FFers like (and again, this really hasn't deviated from previous activity on the service). It's like you have to spend 3-4 hours on FF to actually be noticed nowadays. If that's the expectation the users have of their peers, I'm not going to be able to participate and feel like I'm part of a *community*. - Tamar Weinberg

There's not much news to talk about. What there is to discuss is depressing. - Robert Scoble

Yes, I'm trying to cope with a heap of new followers, lots of them from Twitter. I think I'd like to see a little switch to turn the twitter tide on and off just to catch up with the FriendFeed stream. <yeah I know - set upsome filters> -] - Chris Loft

Robert, your commentary is extremely well-received though, and I don't consider it at all depressing. - Tamar Weinberg

Tamar: that's cause I'm avoiding most of the real news that's flowing across my screens. Layoffs, bad car sales, etc. - Robert Scoble

I wish I could agree, but I'm seeing about the same level of interactivity. Actually, since I hid just about all Twitter posts, I'm seeing a lot more interactivity. In your case, unfortunately you may be hit by a lack of interest due to a bunch of duplicate posts. You are posting the same stories that others are posting and that may be hurting your interactivity. - Alex Scoble

Very true Robert, but I am noticing people are just too depressed to be active. I can't even give away 3 Guitar Hero packages on one site. People are just not reacting to much of anything right now. - MarkCarras

I wonder if it is the recession, the influx of newbies, or just tons more people making the experience diffuse? - anna sauce

anna: all the above. One of my posts earlier today got more than 100 comments, so there are people here. It's just that the flow is going faster too. - Robert Scoble

I'd hope people stopped sharing the same kind of content here, Robert. I like FF because there's a lot of unconventional stuff shared. I actually don't see much about layoffs and the like. - Tamar Weinberg

Aside from Scoble and a couple of my Italian friends, I agree with you - there is less interactivity. And I agree with you (re bad news), when conversations are based on understanding why something happens it's easier to think in problem solving terms. - Valeria Maltoni

Tamar: no, my point is that there isn't much interesting stuff to discuss. New Skype shipped today. New friendfeed features. New Google Earth. But those things get beat to death pretty quickly. The rest of the news? Pretty depressing stuff. - Robert Scoble

Alex, I hide Twitter for the most part, and even so, there's not a lot going on here. People who "Share on FriendFeed" are barely actually seeing responses to the stuff they explicitly want to share only with their FF friends. It's sad. They're active, they want to be active, and yet, nobody cares what they invested their time in sharing with the rest of the world. That's how I'm seeing it lately. I don't know what's going on but 2009 isn't off to a great start for FF despite all the coverage. - Tamar Weinberg

News-flash....I gotta $1.45/hour raise at work! I'm happy as.... - Wallace

Robert, why feel compelled to share mainstream news? Why not something you think most of your friends haven't found online? I typically limit myself to the odd stuff I wouldn't expect my followers to have seen before, because otherwise I'm just being redundant. I notice a few other FFers doing the same thing. I LOVE what they offer. - Tamar Weinberg

The debates were the apex for me, regarding interactivity on here. The photo memes were OK, but the debates brought up all of these issues that people discussed- pro-choice/pro-life, gay marriage, taxes, etc. It was rollicking. - anna sauce

I find it goes in spurts. I'll have a lot of action and activity on my feed and then ... a dry spot. Sometimes I get activity on my 'business' posts and then other times on my 'diversions' posts. *shrugs* - AJ Kohn

AJ, exactly! Either FF hasn't received critical mass (we know it hasn't) or people are being overwhelmed anyway. Maybe people are also getting annoyed at the lack of innovation and development on the site -- I mean, it's still a pain to navigate through FF messages, etc. So they take a break and then come back. I really don't know what it is, but it feels dead here on 90% of the feeds in my main stream. I wonder if I should take a long break too? But that's not what regular community participants do! - Tamar Weinberg

I think it's somewhat seasonal. The groundhog doesn't (or does) see his shadow and people tend to go underground until spring. - Craig Seabaugh

I guess I'll come back then, Craig. (No, I really don't want to go. But lately it's just so dead here.) - Tamar Weinberg

@Tamar: I just continue to feed (though lately less so because I've been so dang busy) and figure I'm either getting boring or the crowd has moved on ... and I'll either remain boring or get exciting again or the crowd will never come back or will return ... *chuckles* ... it's not that I don't care but ... if people like my stuff, great - if not, great too. I learn so much here it's worth my continued contribution, which I hope has some small positive impact of its own. - AJ Kohn

Good attitude, AJ. At the same time, it's still a network medium, and if the networking isn't two-way, it feels very empty. - Tamar Weinberg

@Tamar: I agree to a point but ... I try not to watch it too closely. Watched pot and all that. Instead I try to engage in discussions which becomes very interactive, so even if my feed is likeless ... there's still a lot of back and forth. - AJ Kohn

I'd just like people to comment more and to actually *see* that back-and-forth. I'm not seeing it much at all except on VERY active FFers' accounts. - Tamar Weinberg

FF is largely about spruiking your wares/opinion and trying to get noticed and distribution. While Robert and Louis are interesting and thorough it starts to get a little boring after a while. Not sure how this ting evolves, not that it needs to but I imagine the FF guys would want it to. - Bob Sonin

@Tamar: Ahh, so you're seeing a decrease in the comments/item? That could be disturbing. The one thing I am concerned about is people over-subscribing on FriendFeed. The FoF feature is *wicked* powerful at bringing a lot of other content into your feed. The people you subscribe to are your filters - so choosing wisely is important. Beach-heads in diverse categories bring a good mix of content IMO. - AJ Kohn

AJ, correct. I'm seeing no comments on items either. (I prefer comments over Likes in general anyway; I love an intellectual discussion.) I like to follow active people who are engaged and who typically would reciprocate. I don't see reciprocation lately though! (And I'm not only talking about myself here.) - Tamar Weinberg

Tamar: I just looked at your items. I just didn't see much that I wanted to engage with there. I'm getting more engagement than ever on friendfeed, so I know there's lots of people here. Plus, look at this item. It got me engaged in a way that your other items didn't. Partly because you were saying something conversational with an implicit question. Asking questions in items is a huge way to get engagement. - Robert Scoble

I'm noticing the opposite, though in very small numbers. I'm certainly no FF heavyweight but I appreciate the FF feedback through likes and comments - Glenn Batuyong

Bob, I disagree that "FF is largely about spruiking your wares/opinion and trying to get noticed and distribution." FF is more about community, sharing fun things, longer in depth conversations, threaded comments, etc. EGO-pumpers get no love from me. - anna sauce

the real problem is that friendfeed doesn't know what friendfeed wants to be - this is causing people to slow usage including myself - i have been writing notes about this and hope to make a full post about it in the next day or two. you have people sending their feeds here with no participation - you didn't get that on a forum - and i could go on... - Allen Stern

Tamar: You seem to have just proven yourself wrong, here. You got quite a few comments, and some real conversation. So it is still possible ;-} - Seth Greenblatt from NoiseRiver

I bookmark alot of other people's stuff. 10:2 ratio for me - Anthony Farrior

I'm finding that people who are following me seem to be less interested in real news than a couple of months ago. I see groups of people who have made friends with each other interacting on a more personal or superficial level than in the past. The photo meme's and 25 things meme are a good example of more superficial interaction. - Jeff P. Henderson

@Jeff: +3. I'd agree that there seem to be some groupings going on that are more social in nature than before. That's not to say that it's a bad use of FriendFeed but it's just different from how it was before. I do sort of feel like the balance has tipped toward social and I'm looking for ways to increase the news portion of my time and feed. - AJ Kohn

@AJ, I think it's good that people are socializing. I know some people are here for that only, others for news/business only and some, like me are here for a little of both. I think now that the elections are over, there is a lot less high profile news to talk about, or maybe some people got burned out on news and politics and need a vacation. - Jeff P. Henderson

i agree with jeff and aj. things have become a bit too clique-ish imo plus much of the content and way it's presented seems to have gone down in quality. perhaps these two are related. - Cee Bee

I believe many are tired of being told what to do on FF with their feeds. Its put a dampener on things and what to post. People are looking for the next social site. - CW™

Tamar - I'm seeing the same thing. My guess is that because of Friendfeed's exponential growth, it probably takes twice as much engagement. Also, many people are approaching it like Twitter (posts of the minute) instead of making lists OR just wandering around. I found this post (and obviously I subscribe to you) in the Everyone tab! - Charlie Anzman

@Chris, as far as content aggregators go, am not sure it could be done better than FF, what do you think people are looking for? - Bob Sonin

i don't agree with that at all, chris. people are free to do as they please and many seem to have opted for the easy way out by flooding their feeds with memes, LOLcatz & general childishness over more thoughtful or interesting topics. i think this in turn has turned away people who are looking for something a bit more thought-provoking or immersible - Cee Bee

I'm often disappointed in the lack of interest in some of the items I post. I tend to post a lot of links and articles about green energy, autos, photography, semiconductor/tech industry news. I know many of the people who are following me did so because of some of these posts, but most do not get comments. I really do think many people are here for a social experience much more than a news/educational experience. - Jeff P. Henderson

I believe there was a lot of socializing and sharing going on. Then some people started to complain about what people were sharing and posting. Usenet, and IRC was this way and still is. AOL had the chat rooms which were similar. Free for all, all you can eat posting. Its just the way things go on the internet. The more popular a service becomes the more people want to regulate it and put it in their own boxes which limits others. Its how it goes. - CW™

@Cee Bee, I think you have a good point. I definitely see less serious posts than I used to. It is quite possible that some people have been driven away by the increased volume of sophomoric posts. - Jeff P. Henderson

I guess I'm following friendly people. I have not experienced much of any bullying or battling lately. I saw much more of that during the election. - Jeff P. Henderson

I honestly think it will be an ebb and a flow of news versus entertainment. Hey, I like my LOLCats but I post my news stuff too, frankly more the latter than the former lately because others are finding the entertaining stuff before me. The interaction may be going down as new people come on and subscribe to *lots* of people. The FoF feature is like social-herpes - you're not just subscribed to that person but everyone they've subscribed to as well. - AJ Kohn

I'd like to be able to like comments - Howard Ross

Robert, I am not necessarily talking about my own content, but fair observation. Allen, AMEN. And I'd like FF's dev team to fix front-facing issues rather than stuff like search and Twitter users. Come on, this basic interface is horrid. Thank you for Cleaner FriendFeed v2, but like I've said time and time again, we should NOT have to rely on outside talent to enhance FF. FF should take it seriously themselves... - Tamar Weinberg

Seth, it doesn't happen very often. And sometimes there's good stuff that people eventually engage in but I have to "bump" up the content to bring it to the eyeballs of people actually using FF itself. If your timing is bad on the service, it's like your content gets lost in oblivion. Bumping up content a few times has actually shown that people DO want to interact, but they just didn't see the right content at the right time. - Tamar Weinberg

Tamar - The team does listen. Suggest someone reshare this entire thread to the Friendfeed Feedback room (if they haven't already). - Charlie Anzman

Charlie, they may read but they don't acknowledge. I've posted so many things there that haven't been addressed. I understand that some of these requests may be "outrageous" or not what they had planned, but I don't really see much innovation or feedback about some of the suggestions I (or others) have made there. - Tamar Weinberg

Tamar: you gotta wait your turn in line. The features we got today I was asking for last March. They are bringing us new stuff on quite a regular basis. Compare innovation here to Twitter and you'll see a lot more here. - Robert Scoble

Robert, you're very much a power user, not sure you understand the plight of a mere mortal ;) - Bob Sonin

Bob: don't be so sure! Either way, I had to wait almost 11 months to get the features I wanted, so being a power user is overrated. :-) - Robert Scoble

Robert, you must have a big, well functioning brain to deal with all the threads, you're a marvel to humanity; AI still doesn't stand a chance! - Bob Sonin

tamar, that would be a common problem when all the news gets shared by so many so quickly, your own footprint hasnt grown smaller, those of other on FF have grown in size and reach, re posting the same story in 10s of diff formats and platforms will not solve this. to stay relevant and " immediate " youd have to figure out a way to be unique. how ? well :) thats the secret isnt it ? - atul abraham from twhirl

great discussion, best I've seen all day - Peter Efland

We have all been playing in the snow! - Joe Dawson

This is because people are starting to perceive FF more like a blogging (or rather tumblelogging) platform, instead of a place to share links. Time to decide what FF wants to become when it grows up? - Jordi Soler

Oh Robert, I don't doubt that they're doing stuff, but it seems a bit slow. My biggest issue is that the concerns aren't perceived as being addressed. A mere "thanks, we'll look into it" is all I really want. - Tamar Weinberg

I agree with you Tamar. I've never been hugely popular, but I'm not even getting likes from Tyson Key any more. I feel like a laid an egg or something. - Phil G

Phil - LOL ...OMG I just spit out my pasta!! hahahaah!! You are funny!! I *like* you!! - Susan Beebe

Aww thanks Susan! You are the best! - Phil G

Tamar - You got a good dialog going. Food for thought. Paul B wrote an article a while back about how long it takes a start-up to mature. Despite it's growth, Friendfeed is still tweaking and innovating. It is positively confusing to a new user at this point (which bugs me because I don't want anyone turned off). Time will tell. TREMENDOUS potential. The real problem (now) is that you need to devote TIME to use the tools and engage often for it to work the way you might like. - Charlie Anzman

Phil, hopefully I didn't have something to do with that. I was getting annoyed that Tyson was liking everything and bumping up so much stuff (including spam) into my FF stream. Maybe he finally saw my FWEET and listened. (oops) - Tamar Weinberg

Charlie, but your comments are geared toward the new users. What about the old users who aren't as engaged anymore? *THAT'S* where I see the problem. - Tamar Weinberg

The "old users" (a.k.a. "early adopters") will move on to something else as soon as this becomes mainstream, leaving here a residual presence. It's an old internet law! :) - Jordi Soler

Jordi, maybe but they won't be gone forever. Let's use Robert Scoble as the example. He still uses Twitter! ;) - Tamar Weinberg

FTW I made Louis's blog post! ;) http://www.louisgray.com/live... ... but for the record, I'm not "depressed," just kind of sad that FF seems to be every man for himself and not for the community these days. (P.S. Hi Louis) - Tamar Weinberg

Tamar: the community here is getting a lot bigger. When that happens it's a lot harder to demonstrate concern. - Robert Scoble

I suppose you're right. I prefer reciprocity; I only subscribe to people who seem to be active and have an interest in my content. I guess those people, though, are either starting to subscribe to new users who may or may not be involved, but that just means that they have to focus on more noise (imo?) and less quality. YMMV. - Tamar Weinberg

Wow, big discussion in here! Personally, my lack of interaction on FF equals lack of experience using it: i'm just getting started so to speak. I've always been more of a Twitter user. Trying to link its concepts and make it worth it. But, gotta agree a bit with Scoble: a lot of bad news lately! It's a layoff fest and I've been just the latest guest in this party! Hope to get back to great discussions with a more perspective giving the harsh reality around us. - May

I hope there are "discussions" too, May. My gripe really boils down to the fact that FF has had less of it lately. (But welcome aboard!) :) - Tamar Weinberg

This is a great discussion. I sit here in the background and absorb as much as I can. I contribute now and then, but sometimes feel there is not much point reposting stuff that has already been posted and reposted. The content here is still high quality. We can't always take our selves too seriously and there is a great deal of light-hearted fluff. Someone said our friends are our filters and this very true. I follow a lot more people who came up in conversations and found them interesting. But I often just sit in the background and take in whatever I find interesting. And have a good laugh while I try to learn . . . and there must be thousands and thousands of us, just watching and listening and agreeing or not. - Chris Loft