Nomster Manifesto

This manifesto is a WIP currently. It's a draft. Still, here we go.

When a project claims to be following NM:

• It MUST NOT treat users as cattle; it should treat users as people who deserve respect online or offline. Treating people as stupid backfires sooner or later anyway

• It MUST NOT track you or your user actions in any non-obvious way. If there is any kind of user categorization, it must be explicit to the user and become immediately obvious (e.g., the user's consent is present - it becomes apparent to the user at the time of the action, such as selecting an option for an email list categorization by the user's choice). NO implicit tracking, like "what did I do on this page is automatically captured in a gazillion ways."

• It MUST respect user's data privacy: collect as little data as possible; best case - no data at all/no digital footprint, not even cookies (but chocolate 🍫 is allowed).

• It MUST NOT take user's data as hostage. For example, if I want to get or retain my data out of your platform, I should be able to.

• It MUST reference useful sources, especially when they are other people or their projects, relating in some way to itself! For example, if you drew inspiration from somewhere, don't hold that to yourself! That may actually only help you (and them), and it makes the Universe a better place.

• Its creators MUST treat themselves as ordinary humans - not as higher-dimensional beings. Humility; they MUST NEVER "look down on the crowd," for they are inadvertently part of the crowd ;) (example: the ainomsters.com/who page where the creator speaks openly about being a failure, just an ordinary human).

• It SHOULD be and do good to newcomers, educating them if necessary, not treating them like they are supposed to know everything or why they are seeing something. Be upfront about what everything means; know that not everyone has the same way of mental processing as you, and respect that.

• It DEFINITELY MUST NEVER deteriorate a good user experience over time, like locking features up or adding paywalls for stuff that was previously free - like those enshittified platforms do over the years due to their monopolies. You get a DE FACTO ENSHITTIFICATION FEATURE if you do so... DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT.

• It definitely! MUST NEVER apply hidden lowkey ulteriour insidious policies and practices that study or drive user behavior, including but not limited to: user tracking, manipulating users via dopamine-inducing mechanisms or subtle "sales acts" to drive the user to a decision they would never naturally reach (for example: "funneling" users just for the purpose of looting a purchase from them by applying emotional manipulation and then disappearing).

• It MUST NOT turn users into products - e.g., Facebook, among many others, as the definitive example from the near past (Meta, who?? a failed Meta Universe experiment, hahaha lololol).

• It should strive for minimalism and clarity.

• It should strive for substance over outlook/surface looks.

• It should attempt to be transparent at every possible aspect where ambiguity could arise (trust me, ambiguity is everywhere; it's that nobody tells you because they are in a hurry or don't care).

• It MUST serve users rather than be only benefited by them.

• It MUST always communicate substantial, non-obvious decisions or changes/updates to the current workings of the project base to its user base in some way, best in a written, public format easily accessible.

• It MUST NOT apply sudden unexpected drastic UX updates without making the option to revert individually or opt out for users - another form of respect to the user. An anti-example is Google Android changing the phone pick-up swipe mechanic from vertical to horizontal (that's absurd).

• It should attempt to give its users access to more than expected.

• It should try to educate people and share with them how things work - e.g., how to replicate a creation or a relevant concept, to their potential benefit (like this website) - be a good citizen, not a corporate self-entitled idiot.

• It MUST NOT cling onto things in a proprietary corporate manner, trying to juice every single cent from users.

• It MUST give some form of genuine value that after the point it reaches users is then untakeable - like a funny Nomster article on ainomsters.com (which is always free to use/copy/retain) or a downloadable that was downloaded or even bought from the website. It MUST NEVER introduce a DRM policy, or "is not yours policy anymore." Example: Steam platform, where if you lose your account, you also lose your bought games, even after they are on your computer.

• It CAN make money from its users (though not required) as long as all on the list is complied with in its best intention.

• It should be upfront when it sells bullshit and that is intentional, in any way - e.g., be honest about what you are actually selling, especially if it's stupid; could be in a good way.

• Inclusivity: It should CLEARLY communicate additions to its products/project. Examples can include, but are not limited to: "News/updates" articles/press releases, git commits publicly available, an official channel where developments are announced, like chat or forum or platform that includes users. Best case scenario is if it does not require login and is publicly available.

• It MUST develop/work in an independent manner, not being driven by ulteriour motives or hidden forces (like a backstage lobby, large corporation, or a government).

• It should attempt to retain humaneness in its every aspect :)

• It should be in line with the truth even when it is harsh or unpopular ;)

• It should be humble enough to self-correct and be upfront about it - especially if it made a mistake towards this Manifesto or... the truth.

• It MUST NOT use machine learning for studying and categorizing its users.

• It CAN change and update project direction as long as in line with all on this list.

• It should, when dealing with knowledge, ideally spread knowledge for the better of its users and the world as a whole.

• It MUST NOT bring any kind of intentional engineered brain rot to users - example: AI chatbot sycophancy through HRLF (Reinforcement Learning from Human Feedback).

• It MUST NOT bring or drive to engineered addiction (e.g., ML algorithms that suggest content to get you hooked in doomscrolling behavior) - examples: when you can't stop scrolling through FB, Insta, Ytube, Tik, you name it. It MUST NOT promote or offer any sort of gambling/betting which involves actual money. This is low, don't do it.

• It MUST NOT include and promote any kind of "bad content," which is inherently disrespectful to others in any sort of way - non-provoked aggression, forceful behavior toward others, or any sort of obviously illegal or inhumane activity.

• It CAN and SHOULD be critical of the "lack/avoidance of truth," while it MUST remain respectful and not overly aggressive just for the sake of aggressiveness (e.g., "bashing the wrong stuff") - example is "news articles" (or Nomsters on ainomsters.com). Intelligent and respectful humor, sarcasm, irony, parody, and all similar constructs are more than welcome when they are in line with the truth and not inherently harmful. They can be offensive though, when mocking or pointoing out obvious stupidity and mental slop-drivers.

• It should make all base content available for free (the core) - example is Nomster articles on ainomsters.com.

• It should ultimately give more than its creators receive.

• It MUST NEVER promote violence, segregation, discrimination, any kind of illegal or highly improper content, also any kind of brain-rot-driving content that subsequently triggers addiction or decay. The latter includes, but is not limited to, gambling, pornography, AI-like sycophancy, and any other illegal type of content.

• It should treat the user, when being a living person (does not apply to AI bots), as equal to any other living person - with respect and appreciation (I repeat: does not include respect for AI bots).

• It MUST do its best to remain anti-enshittified by following the above guidelines.

The first and definitive example of this Manifesto is the ainomsters.com project. Snarky comments on AI developments. The most absurd stuff that people don't talk about. The lies and the truth and reading between the lines. Check it out!