I used to judge people for going about their daily lives with headphones on (like shopping) as being antisocial. In the last few years, I’ve come to realize they were just quicker to realize how annoying our society is and I’m increasingly likely to join them.
Recently I went to a mall and visited all the department stores. One of them had a guy playing a piano live and my first thought was “how quaint”. Then, as I sat and waited for my wife to try things on it struck me that I wasn’t hearing horrible music played over speakers - the piano was really nice. Why can’t places go back to playing relaxing music like that (even recorded)?
Theres a restaurant I go to which plays music that youd expect from a fallout game. The old folks like it cause nostalgia but a couple other folks on the younger end have said something along the lines of “I heard this in Fallout New Vegas” its great, also apparently Big Iron played once and a bunch of old bastards and younger guys sung along to it. I wish I was there for it.
Then there is this guy that has his headphones so loud that I can hear what he listens to from 5 rows away
That’s was pisses me off ever since I started to go by train instead of my car for environmental reasons to work. Like what happend that people don’t understand the general politeness anymore. We used to be gentle to each other and that means that I don’t force other people to listen to my videos as well.
The last time a young mother gave her little 3 year old child an iPad to watch videos. I’m not sure what pissed me off the most, that it was with sound or that the mother gave an iPad to her kid, because it’s well studied how bad phones and tablets influence kids.
Some other things to add:
- Stand left, walk right on escalators and moving walkways
- Do not walk more than two abreast, and be aware that there may be people behind you who want to walk faster.
My main gripe with society is that everyone else is in their own little worlds and I’m stuck in the real one dealing with them all.
I completely agree.
But.
I fucking hate how I can’t read about anything any more. Especially instructional things.
It’s getting to the point that if there’s something I want to learn about or research, I have to watch a video. And of course, I probably didn’t bring headphones, because I wasn’t planning on listening to or watching anything.
this is what closed captioning is for, ya know and the other thing
Then you wait until you get home or to an otherwise appropriate venue. No one wants to hear a tutorial they didn’t ask for about putting up drywall on their commute home or in the grocery store.
This is not really true in my experience. The vast majority of instructional videos and video essays are just repackaging a text resource, often just the list of references from Wikipedia. I think you’re just falling for the veneer of professionalism that makes YouTubers popular, but remember it doesn’t actually mean they know what they’re talking about any more than a random forum poster. There are of course exceptions, but the glut of instructional videos is just because they’re profitable, not because they’re actually full of unique knowledge.
I need headphones regularly for learning languages (Duolingo), learning coding, learning about physics etc So there are always Bluetooth headphones in my small bag.
There’s no life without them
If you are in public, like a bus, restaurant, store, public space, etc.
Your phone shouldnt make any fucking noise at all besides ringing and the text ping noise.
And if you’re gonna answer it, don’t put it on speakerphone, and respect teh fact that everyone within 300 feet of you doesnt want to be party to your fucking phonecall.
I was at a party and another person was watching videos on their phone without headphones while everyone was watching a movie. We were all too polite to say anything because it was part of a three-day meetup for people who had been talking to each other on a forum for years and no one wanted to be critical of anyone else, but wow did it piss me off.
This is why people do it… Because no one’s willing to call them out and ask them to stop.
I know, but I feel like that was an unusual situation- a group setting where everyone would be there for multiple days and no one knew each other in person. Sort of a ‘everyone be diplomatic’ thing so as to not make things bad for the hosts.
I like harsh noise music if the volume is low enough. Not an insult, I genuinely like it, but it is quite loud.
Oh my god this is so true
Makes me so irrationally angry especially when the person in question keeps cutting them off halfway through sentences
Ex used to do this all the time
If you have enough money to afford a modern cellphone, you can pay $20 for crappy bluetooth headphones like the rest of us. It’s very interesting that it’s never an otherwise very respectful and thoughtful individual whose playing their music loudly in a public space, there’s always one or two other markers letting you know they’re just always an asshole.
As I understand it, people mostly change their mind (and thus behavior) for two reasons.
The first is in-group beliefs. If someone sees other people in their in-group believing a thing or behaving in a way, they’re more likely to adopt that. Possibly the people who play audio in public, their friends and peers are the same way. But if you also might be in one of their groups, like a college kid to another college kid, or a junior professional to another, talking to them might make a difference. But if you’re like a 59 year rich old white guy, telling a 16 year old non-white poorer kid is unlikely to land, because they probably see you as outgroup.
The other thing that changes minds is horrible trauma. Like, if you smashed their head into the bus window, took their phone and transferred all their money (via venmo or whatever), then tossed the phone out the window, they might change their mind about being a public irritant. Maybe. They might also take some other lesson instead. But either way you’d go to jail for several crimes, so probably don’t do that.
I was in a train replacement coach the other week, and sitting behind me were some guys who were watching YT Shorts or TikTok (Probably the latter) over speakers. I didn’t have my own earphones with me, so I had to hear his shit the whole way through.
If I was any sharper, I would have asked: “What gives you the confidence that any random person nearby appreciates what you’re hearing?”
I find that this works for most of my interactions with strangers. Question what media they are consuming and start a conversation from there.
If they felt so inclined to play their audio loudly I see it as an opportunity to engage with that.
Literally my school bus, there’s like 50 students inside at any given time, more than half of them blast tiktoks, shorts, reels or other bullshit, the rest are either yelling and acting macho, or really wanna gtfo of that bus.
Well thanks for the inside intel, because I briefly would consider it when I saw the local busses’ “Now hiring drivers!” stickers but then imagined this is what would make it pretty much hell every day. :D
I’d say if you want to be thanked a lot per day, being a driver is for you, although I’d rather drive the public buses than the monstrosity of a school bus
It’s my understanding that around here, the pay is low because you don’t work full-time, but a lot of the people do it are doing it because they can still get health insurance through it.
Just like drug addicts, these people are addicted to dopamine and they will do anything to get it even if it makes everyone else uncomfortable
I think TikTok format video players are straight up drugs. It’s a real physical addiction which even has withdrawal symptoms
They are so appealing, I do avoid them but it’s just sad to watch everyone else become a victim of those
Physical addiction is a stretch
It doesn’t actually matter. A addiction will ruin lives if unchecked. No matter if physical or psychological. It’s all about definitions at that point too.
Where does physical end and where does psychological start.
It’s not a matter of one is worse than the other.
Why?
Is Tik Tok a physical substance entering your body? Just making sure we’re talking about the same thing.
I think they call that chemical addiction or physical dependence?
some folks firmly believe everyone and everything exists solely to entertain them snd they cannot fathom that anyone else wouldnt feel the same
Its not their fault. The phones took away their headphone jacks.
lol, no fellow commenter, this also happened before they did that, there was even an ONG or random group here that walked around with very cheap wired earbuds to distribute to these rude people a decade ago. It just wasn’t video but downloaded mp3s.
Even current non Bluetooth are adapting the new Usbc insert so that’s not it.
People weren’t great about wearing headphones in public either.
Nobody took away their headphone jacks. It’s them who bought devices without one.
Ehh a bit disingenuous. Apple, samsung, and google took away the headphone jack. You either have to get an old phone (like late 2010s) or buy it from niche companies (sony phones, gaming phones, or some chinese phones)
I mean, yes, but a 3.5mm to usb-c adapter is like $10, so that’s still not really an excuse.
Most people use wireless headphones these days, and usb-c headphones are getting more common. (I’m hearing impaired, all headphones sound the same to me, but maybe an audiophile will tell me why usbc headphones suck compared to 3.5mm)
When I bought my new pixel I went to the gym that afternoon and immediately realised I couldn’t use my headphones because I hadn’t been mindful of my missing headphone jack. Worked out in silence, and bought an adapter on the way home for my headphones. Problem solved.
There’s tons of quiet things you can do on your phone if you’re bored and don’t have headphones.
The only people who are allowed to have their phones on full volume plasting noises without headphones are visually impaired people, because otherwise they’d need to put their headphones in just to check what time it is on their phone.
My brand-new Samsung phone has a headphone jack.
I see what you’re saying though, and while that may be true now, it hasn’t always been the case. If sales of the first iPhone model without a headphone jack had hit an all-time low and people kept buying the older models instead, Apple likely would have realized the mistake and brought it back. They did this with their shitty laptop keyboards and removing the HDMI port and card reader too. But instead, people just complained and still bought those devices anyway, signaling to manufacturers that it was okay, and then others followed suit and here we are now.
There’s always alternatives for people willing to stick to their principles. My device still has a removable battery as well and so did the one I had before.
Im glad you still believe in consumer friendly phones. Unfortunately all the flagships oned have decided one port is enough. As for consumer repairs, I wouldnt be surprised if it becomes completely impossible soon, given that apple did try blocking third part parts before with the iphone 13.
Unfortunately all the flagships oned have decided one port is enough.
Customers showed them it’s enough. I don’t blame the companies for it. Supply and demand. Why add features in your devices that only cost you more money to implement when removing it has no effect on the sales.
As for consumer repairs, I wouldnt be surprised if it becomes completely impossible soon
Consumers will be able to choose between repair or replacement of defective products within the two-year legal guarantee period. Companies will have to repair a product for free within that period, if cheaper than a replacement, and continue to offer affordable repairs for five to 10 years after a product’s sale even if it is outside of the guarantee.
Manufacturers and distributors will also have to inform consumers of their right to have products repaired and offer spare parts to independent repairers at reasonable prices.
