Interests rename

"Interests" is a somewhat ambiguous name for a thing that's intended to be clear.

D's 2024 Sept 22 RFC: https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s47m3mea26

History

This is inherited from LiveJournal; Brad's initial phrasing, with the unfortunate example 'words that could end the sentence "I like ___" ', which had gnarly implications down the line and was the proximate cause of notable LJ disaster Strikethrough (ptooie).

Issue Space

Intended use: this user may or may not write about these things but if you are interested in that topic (pro or anti) you may vibe with this user, which they want to be visible (shown on profile) and discoverable (findable in interests search, linked to others with the same interest).

Extent: this should cover, among other things:

• favorite video games
• hobbies
• career
• location
• personality
• identity
  • race/gender/sexuality/neurotype
• disabilities
• hates
• roleplaying-specific stuff (see: the original Strikethrough accounts with "rape" and "murder" in their interests)

But what word (or short phrase, but we're going for single word) is better?

Proposals

Serious

• Topic tags (D) -- confusable with journal tags
• Keywords (D) -- (connotes something else to Kareila)
• Topic keywords (D)
• Topics
  • +1 veryroundbird
• "something to do with 'connection'" (Lassarina)
• Interests (Doranwen still likes it)
• Channels (bsky acct)
• predilections (Dan Martinez) https://bsky.app/profile/hivehand.cc/post/3l4s5gmzsaw2k
• hashtags (Octopus Gallery) -- difficult to distinguish from entry/post tags https://bsky.app/profile/octopusgallery.bsky.social/post/3l4s53dkm7423
• identities (blueishmage) -- this would going to capture a lot of race/gender and not the full expanse of the target https://bsky.app/profile/blueishmage.bsky.social/post/3l4s5nugk7h2b
• identities / personalities / locations (split at front end, merged in back end) (blueishmage) https://bsky.app/profile/blueishmage.bsky.social/post/3l4s6pcvbx32a
• friend-finders (blueishmage) -- "instead of naming them by what they are, name them by what they do" https://bsky.app/profile/blueishmage.bsky.social/post/3l4s6tybdud2a

---

• Something one is excited about (but not sure how to turn that into an applicable noun) (Lassarina)
• Obsessions (MadGastronomer)
• Fascinations (MadGastronomer & Azz) -- D likes, but would need a lot of explaining
  • https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/fascination
  • +1 TKarney https://bsky.app/profile/pecunium.bsky.social/post/3l4s55eupwv2s
• Passions (Kareila) -- (does sound like a romance novel series, is definitely a soap opera, "graphic design is my passion")
  • https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/passions
  • +1 ravensnpennies https://bsky.app/profile/ravensnpennies.com/post/3l4s4zpa7qt2p
  • +1 TKarney https://bsky.app/profile/pecunium.bsky.social/post/3l4s55eupwv2s
• Enthusiasms (MadGastronomer)
• things I like that you might like too (h2)
• "things that are important to me" (D) -- by way of example in https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4g4vnmf2e
• "things that I am into" (D) -- by way of example in https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4g4vnmf2e
• beloveds (Ms Boba, who loves whimsy) https://bsky.app/profile/essentialrandom.bsky.social/post/3l4s57trd7c22
• fixations (Friend of Justice) https://bsky.app/profile/bigbadbugsteak.bsky.social/post/3l4s557olzn2c
  • +1 TKarney https://bsky.app/profile/pecunium.bsky.social/post/3l4s55eupwv2s
• Rabbit Holes (TKarney) https://bsky.app/profile/pecunium.bsky.social/post/3l4s55eupwv2s

---

Reframing the prompts

• "things I am interested in" with helpful examples (genres of movie or book, bands) (lassarina, +1 from Doranwen)
• "I'd like to talk about..." (Lassarina)
• "I'd like to read about..." (Kareila)

Unserious

• likes (Kareila)
• "this is good" (D, for Mark) https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4uzyych2i
• Yelling (Azz)
• bumper stickers (Azz)
• special interests (MadGastronomer)
• favorite things (Kareila)
• what did MySpace call it (Lassarina)
• favorite vibes (Lassarina) (Kareila likes "vibes" but, even more confusing to new users)
• blorbos (Kareila) https://bsky.app/profile/kareila.bsky.social/post/3l4s5jwxhva2g
  • several +1 of LOATHING
• SIAI (Shit I Am Into) (winojohn) https://bsky.app/profile/winojohn.bsky.social/post/3l4s5uwzw452u
• Library of Congress Subjects (Octopus Gallery) https://bsky.app/profile/octopusgallery.bsky.social/post/3l4s57ratpt2i
• ingredients (OctopusGallery) https://bsky.app/profile/octopusgallery.bsky.social/post/3l4s5x7dujv2s

Discarded Proposals

• likes (D's Bad Example) https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4uzyych2i
• verticals ("channels" made D think of) -- too marketing
• hobbies (blueishmage) https://bsky.app/profile/blueishmage.bsky.social/post/3l4s5nugk7h2b

In Use Elsewhere

• Subjects (D) -- (connotes something else to Kareila and also it's in use) https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4uzyych2i
• Tags (Kareila) -- brought up as a That's Not This ; https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4uzyych2i
• theme (D) -- in use elsewhere ; https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4uzyych2i
• keywords (D) https://bsky.app/profile/rahaeli.bsky.social/post/3l4s4uzyych2i