To Bot or Not to Bot? - A Random Rambling
To bot or not to bot? That is the question. And I don't suppose the answer is a simple one. Thus far I haven't used the bots. I know I thought about it early on but the process was complicated enough that I don't think I even bothered to try.
And then, there was how I personally felt about it. I saw that the use of bid bots allowed content to earn large rewards and even reach high up on the trending page regardless of quality. While that doesn't violate the rules of Steemit, it doesn't strike me as supporting the long term viability of the platform.
Some would say otherwise. I've read arguments from bot users and owners that claim that the ability to get great returns on their investment is the reason people invest so bid bots should be encouraged. There's some truth to that but when a large chunk of the reward pool is being split among the accounts that can afford to spend lots of money on bots, new accounts with talent can easily get drowned out.
Another matter to consider is what a minnow like myself gains by NOT using bid bots. Yes, I can tell other Steemians that I don't or I can add the tag "nobidbots" to my posts but is the decision of an individual user (or even a small group) enough to make a difference here? Am I helping myself and/or anyone else?
I've gotten a slightly better understanding of how bidding works thanks to sites like https://steembottracker.com/ and posts from users all over Steemit. I think that after a brief period of learning, I could make enough off of bid bots to supplement my income. I'm not very well paid right now so it wouldn't take much.
So that's what I'm asking myself about these bots. Are they bad for Steemit, am I making a difference by not using them and could I afford more of the things I need if I started using them?
For me, bid bots are likely to stay a last resort for a while. I haven't ruled them out completely but there are a few things I haven't tried yet that I'd look into first. Like reaching out and interacting with my fellow Steemians on their posts more consistently. Or posting on Dtube. Who knows what the future will bring?
Steem on...
Image sourced from pixabay.com
I've used bots to make some Steem, and what I've found is that it takes away my ability to make a difference. I am no longer useful in the live of the people: 1) I find interesting. 2) Who do quality work. 3) Who make a difference in this world.
The world becomes a lesser place. We may as well let the bots write the stories, post them, and vote on them. We can then use our selfishness to lay around and turn in to mush.
After using Bots, I had to think about powering down and selling my Steem. Because that's what is happening? A death spiral.
Then, I find a benefit - that I like to write. This place keeps me writing.
And I start thinking . . . maybe I can be of use.
H. G.
I understand where you’re coming from with that. There’s something at least a little bit broken in the system for bid bots to be as successful as they are. While greed and selfishness can be exceptional motivators, so is desperation. I can’t say for sure what has made other individual Steemians flock to the bots but if I ever join them, it will probably be because I need the extra profit to survive. I’m not there yet though. Right now, I remain extremely grateful that I’ve gotten a chance to rediscover the joy of writing. And to be of use.
If bots are allowed on Steem, then it is not wrong to use them. But not all bots give good returns. Sometimes you end up losing money. I am tech challenged, so I don't really know the ins and outs of how bot works. I have used a couple of them recommended by fellow Steemians. Sometimes, you just like to see a post which you worked on, gets a couple of cents more - especially, when you are just starting out and you haven't been getting much attention.
Cheers!
I wouldn't go so far as to say it's "not wrong" to use them because they're allowed. They're allowed, that's clear. But if they are detrimental to the platform in the long-run, then using them could still be considered "wrong". Things that aren't wrong can be illegal, things that are wrong can be legal. I'm not a saint or a martyr. I can imagine circumstances under which I would put everything on the bidbots even though I think they're at least a little bit wrong. I'm not in any of those situations at the moment thankfully. And it would take some work to figure out how to profit consistently though (I'm a bit tech-challenged myself lol).
I understand what you are saying. But like it or not bots are part of the Steemit Platform. It might not be ethical to use them, but it is not wrong, nor illegal - otherwise, it won't be allowed on the platform.
I also like my work to be judge on it merits. But unfortunately, that is quite impossible.
I guess at the end of the day, it is up to each of us to do as we wish (within the guidelines of course), on Steemit.
We might disagree a little on the definition of "wrong" but I agree, the bots are here to stay. They can't be eliminated by the least powerful accounts and the most powerful accounts tend to profit the most from them. As you said, it's still each individual's choice.
Being completely new to the site, I have little knowledge of the subject, but it seems to me that bots may be temporarily good for individuals, but terrible for the quality of the platform as a whole. If people can get high returns for low effort posts, it encourages them to continue that habit. Not that there's a problem with low effort posts, of course, but ideally they shouldn't be the first thing you see when you visit a site like this. Nor should they be the most heavily rewarded.
To a certain extent, the bots may be important to the site's economy. Still, ultimately, I think their use should be minimized.
Of course, I can't say for sure whether you specifically should use them.
Yeah, that's fairly accurate. Some people use the bid bots for decent quality posts but they don't have to. It would be just as profitable (and less time consuming) to put in low or no effort and reap the same rewards. So there is a fair amount of that going on. If there were limits on how many bots a person could use per post or high they could reach on the trending page I think it might work out better for everyone. But I'm not completely sure about that myself. Welcome to Steemit by the way!
Like you, I haven't used them either and agree with you that it's not so great when content that is lacking rises to the top or perhaps for the future of the community. Really, more than I feel like figuring out too.
Have you assigned your votes out--to a program that automatically votes for others? I haven't tried that either though I can see how one would potentially make more doing it. I went to steemauto as suggested, but then felt why would I give my power away to someone/something else?
You have a very high reputation for not using them and that gives me hope :)
Thank you :D I think my score has to do with my participation in competitions early on. I entered sooooo many Steemit contests. Even when you don’t win it can expose you to people who wouldn’t have found your blog otherwise and some of them decide to follow and vote for you and after a while it adds up. I even ran a contest for a while. As for the autovoting, that never appealed to me. I like the freedom of discovering a post unexpectedly and being able to upvote it. Sure, I’m not a whale or even a dolphin but I prefer making the decisions on where my SP goes and what it does. That’s not to say that I never upvote for higher curation rewards. It’s just that I like to be more directly in control of where my votes go.
Thank YOU for the response! Makes me feel just fine going about it my own way, like you, free to vote on what we want, finding original content and making this a better place for the future :)
Hello friend, I like to say hello, and I have many friends who have used these bots and have had good results, it is in trying and being careful.
Thanks, I might end up trying them too if I think it's worth it but I haven't decided yet.