So, we've made the move and posted our farewell video to YouTube. What a strange experience it is to reflect on the past year and see all that we've learned, experienced, and been grieved by because of that site! As I type this, I feel a strange mix of emotions: a sort of detoxing sadness, relief that it's over, excitement to put our energies into fewer Internet things so that we can focus on Real things, and a strange sort of disbelief that we had been a YouTube channel. If we knew then what we knew now, we would have never made the channel to begin with.
As you will see in the video, we are not leaving YouTube because of the new policies and monetization rules. We were never in it for the money, and we never wanted to "get big." Our whole reasoning to put out a channel was to share our journey with our family back home and to also get to be a part of the online homesteading community that we've learned (and are learning!) so much from. And while that desire is still there, we just can't be part of a website that we have so many issues with.
The sort of videos that make YouTube what it currently is are the "circus" part of Bread and Circus, and we're not willing to play that game anymore. Our content isn't what they want, and so we're choosing to read the writing on the wall and leave now before things go any further. We're not angry, and we don't feel like YouTube owes us anything--they can do whatever they want with their site! We just don't want to be a part of it any more.
And it's a relief. Andrew and I are, by nature, quiet, simple people who just want to be left alone to live as we feel convicted. Being associated with that whole world suddenly feels laughably contradictory!
So here's the ending of one thing, and the beginning of another. We'll give DTube a try as we continue sharing bits and pieces of our homesteading journey through SteemIt! But at the end of the day, we're happiest knowing that we can close the computer, look at the moonlight hitting the grasses of our homestead, and breathe in a deep lungful of real, Ozark air. The frustrations and complexities of the Internet pale in comparison to what we really get to do out here.
▶️ DTube
▶️ IPFS
We've been fake "YouTube Partners" since 2008 when the program began, and we also received the "notice", as described in our last post, "GoodBye YouTube, it's the END of an ERA :: Hello STEEMIT and DTUBE! 🤗", so we can definitely relate...
However, from our perspective, this is nothing new as we saw the "writing on the wall" going back to 2011. Basically, they don't want to let people realize they can be self-sufficient and question the system, or offer an alternative "point of view" to their own.
Oh yeah, and I think you're both right on in your video... I pretty much agree with everything you both said. :)
Thanks for the thoughtful comment. We just started paying attention to YouTube policies when we began back in March, and we were always a bit dubious about the system. But we thought we would give it a try anyway. After almost a year on YouTube, and seeing what they did to other channels, we just had enough. We are happy to have that pruned out of our lives. Not a good company to work for (which is what we were basically doing as content creators).
well, looks like you guys are already off to a great start on STEEMIT, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's already eclipsed anything you've earned on YouTube. Granted you're not in it for the money, but it's still nice to find people who not only appreciate your work, but look forward to "rewarding" you financially for it as well, without the constant worry of whether or not your next video will be demonetized or outright removed from YouTube, because, you know... "divergents"! :)
Understood! I feel the same way about Facebook.
Yup! We are getting rid of that, too. We don't have a personal account, only one for Simple Life Homestead, but that will be gone soon.
Me too! Me too.
"Thank you for using the YouTube off ramp, we're glad you came but even MORE glad you are leaving!" Sad to see what they are doing over there but looks like you and others will be find and now have a decent alternative to keep sharing your story, if you still want to!
Hahahah! Yeah, they are probably really glad to see channels like ours leave. Our content is "not suitable for all advertisers" or so they say for pretty much every video. And all that matters is if advertisers like your material!
Congratulations on making the switch. YouTube is going down the tubes. It's just a matter of time that all REAL content leaves YouTube and all they're left with is cat videos. They don't care, they want everyone to subscribe to their paid for service YouTube Red.
d.tube is so much better. You will never receive a letter in the mail, you will not suddenly discover your videos demonetized or blacklisted. Centralized video services are going the way of the dodo, the blockchain is the future. d.tube is leading the charge. You've made an excellent choice. Steem on Simple Life Homestead! @ironshield
Thanks, @ironshield! We totally agree. They don't want real content on YouTube - fail videos, cute animals, and humans acting like idiots are what they want. We do hope that in the future we can look back and know that we made the right decision. It seems that way so far!
good move, welcome to dtube!!!
Thanks! We are glad to be here.
perhaps thats for the best, youtube's new changes make it very hard for smaller a new content creators succeed, not only harder to make money, but also harder to get exposure and building a following base and a community.
We think it is for the best. And we are just glad to be done with that platform.
The big social media platforms have really shown their true colors in the past year.. They have taken the power from the people and used it to push their own agenda. Just in the past week that i've been on Steemit, i have seen many of my favorite channels move here. Sounds like you have made a good move back to the homestead.
Right? Doesn't it seem like a whole lot has made it self known this past year? They are really pushing something, and we don't like it nor support it.
Great video, Im glad Dtube is a place for sharing homesteading videos. I look forward to sharing some of my favorite videos soon. Hopefully Dtube will stick around.
Judging from a lot of content on SteemIt, homesteading stuff is still somewhat on the fringes, but at least we have a home here.
Because I am having technical difficulties with my computer I cannot watch dtube videos but I will try to watch your video on my phone if I can remember. I hope you fare well here. The homesteading community here is really wonderful. Leaving you a comment for support, as well as to find this post later on my phone to watch!
We were also having trouble with DTube on our computer. Then I realized that I was trying to watch it using Google Chrome (same company who owns YouTube, so maybe there is something going on there?!?). I switched to Firefox, and now I have no problems!
That is really interesting observation.
Right there with you guys! While the latest opinion I voiced was a reaction to the letter of de-monitization from YouTube, I too do no like it as a whole and consider myself in the category of unwanted on YouTube. Google has long ago abandoned its old motto of "Don't Be Evil".
We'd love to have you guys over at Homesteaders Online, an online community of over 250 members (mainly Steemit homesteaders) getting together to chat, share ideas, and otherwise get to know each other and support one another... if that's your kind of thing. :)
Yeah, the new CEO really doesn't like Google's original motto. And because of that has become everything that the motto was against...
And how is the Discord channel different than just the homesteading community on Steemit? Actually, I don't even really know what Discord is. What makes it worthwhile?
At it's most basic level, Discord is a free chat application. We use it as a way for Homesteaders who may or may not be on Steemit to chat with each other, and share content they create. Most members (if not all) are on Steemit, but we don't exclude anyone who may not (yet) be on the platform. :)
We have several chat channels that are specific to homesteading topics where we can do Q&A with each other to learn ad-hoc. We have a mentoring channel where new Steemit members can ask for a mentor and other more seasoned members will volunteer to specifically help out, too.
The newest item we've added to the site is a community-sourced knowledgebase of homesteading articles written, submitted, and approved by the community members. This knowledgebase is a permanent page on the homesteaders-online.com website that links directly back to the community member's post. This gives us a static page to reference items from while still funneling all the credit to the original creator and helping to bring outsiders to Steemit.
We use the discord community as an enhancer to Steemit and find it fits the social gap that Steemit can sometimes leave agape.
Hopefully I helped explain it better and not just confuse more! :-)
Thanks!
Wow, thanks for such an in-depth description. This makes a whole lot more sense, especially as Steemit doesn't have a chat function at this point. The knowledge base is also a great idea since it is so easy for posts to get lost on here after a few days.
I am incredibly proud of you for making this wise decision, which is much more in line with Simple Life Homestead's mission statement. You give me lots to think about all the time, and I'm grateful to learn from you.