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?

  • 🇰 🌀 🇱 🇦 🇳 🇦 🇰 ℹ️@yiffit.netEnglish
    19·
    6 months ago

    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.

    • whotookkarl@lemmy.world
      1·
      6 months ago

      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

        • whotookkarl@lemmy.world
          1·
          6 months ago

          I’m using sync and if an image post doesn’t load i see an error, but if a comment with just an image doesn’t load it just looks like a blank comment. I’ve checked the site a few times and usually the image loads on the site, or if you touch the blank post where an image would be and sometimes that gets it to show up.

    • rufus@discuss.tchncs.deOP
      5·
      6 months ago

      Sure. I can read 99% of the comments normally. Thx I’m gonna try Jerboa again and see if I can reproduce it.

  • Altima NEOEnglish
    6·
    6 months ago

    Same. I’ve gotten a few replies with a blank comment. It’s weird.

      • Chozo@fedia.io
        10·
        6 months ago

        For some reason, attachments to comments posted from Kbin/Mbin don’t seem to appear for Lemmy users.

        • Andrew@piefed.social
          7·
          6 months ago

          'Bin follows the same format as Mastodon for inline images, which is different from Lemmy.
          Mastodon puts the details for an inline image inside an ‘attachment’ field, with nothing in the ‘content’ fields, whereas Lemmy doesn’t use an ‘attachment’ field at all for them, and includes the HTML for img src in the content.
          It’s always been the case that Mastodon didn’t show images from Lemmy comments. I don’t know if the reverse is a new thing or if it’s always been like that.

          • e-five@kbin.run
            3·
            6 months ago

            I don’t know if the reverse is a new thing or if it’s always been like that.

            Here’s a comment in a lemmy issue describing mastodon images not appearing in lemmy from last year. Since the issue was closed three days after 0.19.3 released I had expected it to work in the next version 0.19.4, but it appears that was not the case.

            Edit: While I’m here, I noticed piefed also doesn’t support it, so was considering opening an issue to support attachments, but I imagine there wouldn’t be much desire to do so until mastodon integration is more of a real thing? though I think other software does it, like Plemora/Akkoma/Iceshrimp, I didn’t check but did see the code for it being discussed for plemora at least

            • Andrew@piefed.social
              4·
              6 months ago

              Re: your edit - please feel free to open an Issue for PieFed about it. It’s MBIN content in Lemmy’s communities, so it’s something that needs attention (we should show it, even if Lemmy doesn’t). I’ll have a crack at fixing it next time I’m working on the code.

    • mozz@mbin.grits.dev
      2·
      6 months ago

      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.

  • Call me Lenny/Leni@lemm.eeEnglish
    4·
    6 months ago

    They’re like the dragon scroll, they reflect as much of your true destiny as you’re able to see in yourself.

  • 👍Maximum Derek👍@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
    4·
    6 months ago

    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.

  • mtchristo@lemm.ee
    51·
    6 months ago

    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”

    • rufus@discuss.tchncs.deOP
      1·
      6 months ago

      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.

      • CoffeeJunkie@lemmy.world
        3·
        6 months ago

        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.

        • rufus@discuss.tchncs.deOP
          1·
          6 months ago

          Hmmh. I guess Lemmy should display that kind of information more prominently. But there isn’t much progress UI wise… Guess you could just look it up in the modlog. Or do it like that 😆 Thanks for the report anyways.

  • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    3·
    6 months ago

    I had a comment removed from c/veganscomplaining or whatever their community is that showed up like that when they censored it.

    • rufus@discuss.tchncs.deOP
      3·
      6 months ago

      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.

      • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        2·
        6 months ago

        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.

    • rufus@discuss.tchncs.deOP
      1·
      6 months ago

      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.