If I look at the core functions of Steemit, just what the UI provides, I see a monetized blogging platform with social capabilities or potential.
The Steemit UI doesn't have a chat, so unless you're going off site to do that, it means the socializing is taking place within the comments. I know that happens (I'm a participant in it more and more), but often, it is actually within the confines of the post topic. Stories about lives get related to make a point, or to explain an opinion, people share like or even opposing experiences with the same event or object.
So, if someone says this platform isn't social, well, I don't think that's true. It might not be optimized for that, but that might all be changing with the communities update (whenever that happens).
From what I get out of it, people have been making Steemit into whatever they think it should be. Those who socialize socialize, those who blog blog, those who curate curate, those who delegate delegate, those who spam spam, those who flag flag those who steemclean steemclean, and those who bot bot. I even ran across a bank a while ago loaning people STEEM/SBD, and I guess there's more than one.
The answer to "What is Steemit" is going to be different to different people based on what they like to do, what they can do, and where they find the most value. And maybe, therein lies the way forward. Trying to find someway to coexist without seemingly threatening the very existence of Steemit and the welfare of the STEEM ecosystem anytime anything is deemed out of whack.
I believe posts like this are a step forward, and even more so are the discussions being held here. And in the end, what we should end up with is a multi-use platform.
That said, some things might not be in keeping with the spirit or long term health of that platform. A consensus on what those things are and what to do about them needs to be reached. There are good people on all sides here. We just need to work out the roadblocks help as many as we can find their niche so they have the opportunity to succeed.
Then, let the chips fall where they may.
It would be wonderful if people start seeing it as multi-use platform @glenalbrethsen. I agree that people are using this platform to best suit their interest. The communities feature would help with identifying the brand of steemit when it comes out. At least I hope so, but until then, we will continue to use it as deemed in our minds.
I too have come across a bank on here. Steemit mimics the real world very much, so why shouldn't there be banks? Someone has to fund the economics of Steemit. It's just a matter of who will fall for the shark-bait. If it is worthwhile of the interest in the person's opinion, then definitely a perk to have on here for someone.
As for long term health of the platform, that too will depend on the behavior of the mass. There was a psychology study done once about rape. I believe it was found that people are more inclined to take action when they are the sole person at the scene. When there is a group of people there, they are less inclined to take any protective action because they expect the other person to do it. I believe the same mentality applies here. Many people don't expand beyond their own blog.
Perhaps it may have been a more engaging post if it didn't take me so long to reply back to people. My apologies, life gets busy and next thing I know, it's the weekend again!
Seems to me like there was plenty of engagement going on here. People just kind of did it. :)
We all got to do what we got to do, and we only have so much time to do it in, so no worries. I think the topic here was good enough to get the conversation going, so people jumped in and kept themselves occupied.
I think we're all looking to communities to do something good. I just hope it meets some expectations, at least. The more I hear about it, the more I'm getting concerned that it won't be a fix, or that it won't cause other issues. Not that there's a precedent here for that or anything. :)
We seem to live in a world of unintended consequences, and Steemit in particular is good at that. Someone might argue that unintended consequences are just consequences that weren't accounted for, or that were dismissed, or that might not be so unintended, but I feel better when I give people the benefit of the doubt with their actions and don't automatically consider them incompetent, arrogant or evil (or all three). :)
I definitely know I need that same mercy extended to me. Still, it would be nice for things to do what they're supposed to do, and on top of that, people be happy enough with it that they don't have to come up with ways to circumvent it.
I am so happy people engaged! You definitely are contributing with your thoughtful comment, which I appreciate.
I haven't looked into the communities features although I hear it's supposed to be on the wavelengths or reddit and solve all our steemit world hunger. ;) Will see what consequences will follow.
btw, do you know what gentebot is all about? I see it upvoting some of our comments, but not sure why.
I have also been the recipient of the gentlebot, but I have no idea how or why.
Just checked. It hasn't posted or commented in six or seven months, but is earning a healthy amount of rewards through curation, so it's only upvoting, and probably mainly comments. It's not a bid bot that someone paid that I can see, but it is receiving a 50,000-plus delegation from smooth, which is one (and probably the original) of a few accounts I've seen with smooth in the name.
Smooth's account was created in March 2016, so they're one of the earliest adopters or part of the original STEEM team, while gentlebot has been around since June 2017. So, maybe it's just smooth's way of going around and rewarding engagement. :)