5 mo. ago • 97%

What's the reason for the empty comments, lately?

In the last few weeks, I frequently see some empty comments. It's just the username and no text beneath.

Is there a deeper reason behind this? Do people nowadays strip away the text instead of deleting a comment? Or did some script surface that 'makes the internet forget'? First I thought people did this before deleting a comment and the deletion just didn't get federated. But I scrolled through some older posts and they also still have comments like that, so that can't be it. Right?

Can anyone educate me?

47 comments

hmmmm ive seen image-only comments viewed like this on lemmy when sent from non-lemmy platforms

example

42
- 22
  
  that's empty.
  
  31
  
  Empty here too.
  
  10
  
  Empty when viewing from Voyager
  
  9
  
  Empty for me on Jerboa
  
  8
  
  Permanently Deleted
  
  6
  
  Empty on Sync.
  
  4
  
  Empty on Thunder.
  
  3
  
  Even the view source button on my client says it's empty. I sense shenanigans
  
  1
- This comment does not show an image when viewed on lemmy.world. The image is also missing viewed on lemm.ee. The original Mastodon post does have an image.
  
  13
  
  Permanently Deleted
  
  1
33
- 9
If I delete my post/comment, I first edit it to be blank because it can take way more time to actually delete the post/comment than just editing it. They'll appear as just a completely blank post (not even any unicode spaces or weird shit like that). I started doing this after seeing other users doing the same for the reason I mentioned.

19
- Ah, thanks. Maybe there's a few people like that out there.
  
  6
- I usually replace it with a period to try to make it easier to differentiate from posts that were only an image that didn't load
  
  1
  
  Is it just blank on the website? The apps I use at least have the decency to put a "broken jpg" icon as a stand-in when an image doesn't work.
  
  2
Are you able to read this text?

I haven't seen any issues on jerboa

10
- Sure. I can read 99% of the comments normally. Thx I'm gonna try Jerboa again and see if I can reproduce it.
  
  5
Same. I've gotten a few replies with a blank comment. It's weird.

6
- Fair enough. At least I'm not getting crazy...
  
  3
Permanently Deleted

5
- I can't see any gif, using Boost.
  
  12
  
  For some reason, attachments to comments posted from Kbin/Mbin don't seem to appear for Lemmy users.
  
  10
- Can't see it on desktop web.
  
  8
- The procedure I use for posting from Mbin is:
  
  Try to just attach direct from the source with ![](https://whatever)
  
  If that doesn’t work, attach the image to the message and save
  
  And then edit the message and insert the self hosted image using that same markdown
  
  Thus it’ll show on both mbin and Lemmy.
  
  2
Are you using the eternity app ?

Cause I have noticed deleted comments showing up as blank. While on the web version the show up as "deleted by Creator"

4
- Yes. I have like 3 different apps but I regularly use Eternity. I think you're right and a decent part if it is Eternity. Like half of the empty messages show up in other apps or the web interface. But not all of them. I don't quite think it's just deleted messages. Some others are definitely there and also don't show up in Eternity... Maybe it's a combination of factors. Honestly I didn't quite pay attention when I was using which app. I'm still trying to figure it out. But this definitely seems to be part of it.
  
  1
  
  Sometimes when I'm randomly banned from speaking for no good reason at all, I test to see if I'm still banned by typing 'A' & deleting it. This account has been muted for a week & it looks like it's finally lifted. For now.
  
  My stuff still shows up as 'deleted by creator'. I've noticed the blanks, too. I use Sync for Lemmy.
  
  3
They're like the dragon scroll, they reflect as much of your true destiny as you're able to see in yourself.

4
I haven't noticed this. I'll keep my eyes peeled though. We're both on tchncs so if it's a replication thing we should both see it.

I use Alexandrite as my frontend if it turns out that it matters.

4
4
- 5
- Yeah, that's a bracket but very close to being invisible.
  
  5
- I can see the character it creates from Firefox flatpak.
  
  4
- An empty quote seems to work, at least on sync
  
  2
Probably same reason as here: https://lemm.ee/post/35007837

3
- Hmmh, not sure. I think broken images show up with some character. But that post also has one comment that shows empty in one App and text plus a picture on a different App. I think I need some time and figure out what it does on the computer.
  
  1
  
  6
I had a comment removed from c/veganscomplaining or whatever their community is that showed up like that when they censored it.

3
- Well that shouldn't happen. I guess it's technically possible because I can also change my own comments and they're not signed or anything... But changing other people's comments is kind if lying and being disingenuous. Either it's a technical issue, or your comment was so offensive that it warranted an exception to the rule, or the mods/admins don't know what is right and what is wrong.
  
  3
  
  Nah it wasn't that bad, like I didn't say slurs or anything but I did say some pretty non-vegan shit lmao so I get it. Still though that may be why some posts are blank, I doubt I'm the only one.
  
  2
1
- It's a hashtag. Pretty much invisible but I can still see it.
  
  1

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