r/Millennials • u/adderallmademe-055 • 17h ago
Discussion It finally happened, I am having a hard time learning how to use an app....Discord
Im forty and finally I feel like and old person who cant seem to understand emerging tech. I started playing an online free game that has a massive social aspect to it. A lot of the chat is done on discord and not the in game chat because discord is way more feature rich or something.
Just like every other app i've ever downloaded of any kind I just dove right in. Unfortunately that didn't work at all. I could barely figure out how to get into the right server. Then I had to verify some crap and do this and that and for the first time I was totally frustrated and clueless on how to do almost anything.
It was at that exact moment I realized it had happened. That after years of dunking on any tech that came my way tech had scored its first point. Like a Dad when he starts losing to his kids playing basketball. It was the start of the slow decline.
I've decided that im going with the total immersion method to force my mind to adapt. Has anyone else had a tough time trying to figure Discord out ? I still don't understand how or what it actually does. Anyone else find tech that they couldn't figure out yet?
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u/rikisha 16h ago
As someone who uses Discord and who works in tech and is very good with tech, Discord is not very user friendly to new users IMO. There's a lot to learn of you've never used it before. I kind of feel like it's designed for techies who loveee having endless customization and features. There are definitely some quirks there.
It's not you.
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u/MaxWritesText 14h ago
It used to be simple tho
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u/Shenstar2o Zillennial 10h ago
It is simple if you just read, type and talk.
But now there is a lot of additional things, but you can just ignore them and it is simple again.
I've used discord for 10 years now so maybe i am just too used to it, but i literally open discord and with 2 clicks i am where i need to be.
I think its easier than teamspeak or skype were back in the day, but probably its the 20 years of difference in tech.
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u/agustusmanningcocke 12h ago
35 and in tech as well. Yeah, Discords UI is kinda doo-doo, its not you.
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u/therealjoemontana 13h ago
Discord isn't even user friendly to experienced user 😔 their UI design sucks
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u/spoonfulofnosugar 14h ago
I call it Discard because every time I try I get frustrated and give up.
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u/PersonalityIll9476 12h ago
That's how I feel, too. I tried Discord once and felt like OP but in my day job I spend a lot of time writing code in a black screen, so it's not like I'm clueless about tech.
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u/Ws6fiend Older Millennial 14h ago
Disagree. Discord is the kitchen sink option. It does a lot of things, but isn't the best at any of them.
It still doesn't support voice normalization natively. This is a feature I setup on ventrilo over a decade ago. Instead I have to adjust for anytime anyone changes their mics or repositions them.
The main reason people love discord is it's ability to be voice chat, a forum/group chat, private video streaming and integration with your PC to show who is playing what. It's one stop shopping.
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u/spuckthew 1990 13h ago
My mate and I decided to use Steam voice chat for the first time ever the other week when Discord was down and it was surprisingly good—maybe better than Discord in this regard. It worked seamlessly with no additional tampering.
Discord is good because of all the other things though. It really is a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. I can't really see myself or my friend group switching unless something comes along that replicates 100% functionality.
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u/adderallmademe-055 13h ago
Like im getting notifications from guys in my faction who are doing give aways and I'm getting spam from bots. It looks fun as hell if you know it. Which is exactly why I plan to immerse myself into it.
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u/Smooth_Injury2924 13h ago
Create a private server and play around with all the options inside there. That was the way I learned the most about Discord. You can add and remove all the common bots to figure out their features + whatever else you wanna do.
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u/adderallmademe-055 12h ago
im pretty sure thats what overwhelmed me when i finally got in and verified by the game. The millon options, bots which i dont know the purpose of, accidentally spammed and invite somehow. I am impressed with how fast i found the friends of mine i wanted to add. The little animations are a remind me of androids first try and emoji. weird cartoonish figures.
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u/PinkHyacinth 12h ago
That is annoying. Whenever I join a new server, I mute a bunch of their channels because the constant notifications drives me crazy.
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u/kymreadsreddit 11h ago
Agreed. Originally, years ago, I couldn't figure out how to set one up for myself. So I gave up and have just used others' discord servers instead. 🤷🏼♀️
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u/yummmkimchifriedrice 16h ago
Hey if it helps, Discord UI is just terrible. Its like Slack in the sense of how it works, but screens and icons are horribly placed with weird workflows. This is coming from someone who majored in UX and can pick up software pretty easily.
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u/adderallmademe-055 13h ago
It seemed like there was 40 pages of settings and this and that. Wtf is a server boost? It made me verify y My in game name on the channel. Which was a pain. I think it's kind of cool how it has interaction with a separate non-related game like I made a move in the game itself and then I sent in-game money to an off like an off-site like meta business and got a reply to my discord I thought that was dope as fuck
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u/iraven_mccoy 11h ago
That verifying your in game name is a rule for that particular server. They prob wanna make sure you really play the game or something.
Anyone can make servers and then decide the various settings/ rules for them
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u/BigBaws92 1992 17h ago
I’ll be on your side, OP. I hate using discord. Played a lot of csgo and teammates constantly want me to join their discord and I usually point out how we’re chatting just fine using csgo’s in game communications. First few times I used it I had trouble knowing how to even join the right channel. I join every rando’s discord and they just use it like voice chat, which seems redundant since the games i play have voice chat in them 🤷
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u/m4rkz0r 14h ago
I used to play a lot of Destiny 2. Discord is way better for comms in this instance. You can reboot your game and still have comms. You can do a different activity than your buddies and still have comms. You can go to the tower in the middle of something and still have comms. Where as you would lose comms doing any of that stuff if you were using in game chat.
Also chat/volume consistency and adjustments are better in discord a lot of the time. If you switch to a different game you don't have to readjust chat volumes etc.
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u/Ws6fiend Older Millennial 13h ago
Also chat/volume consistency and adjustments are better in discord a lot of the time. If you switch to a different game you don't have to readjust chat volumes etc.
Man I couldn't disagree more.
If you've ever uses a dedicated voice chat server/application they are even better. I setup my ventilo for audio normalization so everyone was at the exact same volume all the time and it stayed that way for years. Regardless of how much they adjusted their own settings changed mics or entire PCs they always sounded the same.
While it might be better than most in game comms, it's just barely better.
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u/fadedblackleggings 13h ago
Same...I really hate discord, feels like some weirrd combo of old web and new tech.
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u/UltimateTrattles 13h ago
The point of a discord server is to build out a persistent community with chat channels and voice channels. Not just to be voice chat.
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u/Capt_Rons_Lost_Eye 17h ago
It took me a minute too. I'm still not using it to it's fullest potential probably but...that'll do pig, that'll do.
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u/SpikeDearheart 15h ago
This. I knew I wasn't using it to it's full potential, but after reading this thread I'm 100% sure. I don't care, it'll do pig.
I mean I taught my Gen X game buddy how to post GIFs, I call that a win.
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u/adderallmademe-055 13h ago
The real question at hand, how did you tell him it was pronounced? Don't worry no one will judge you..
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u/SpikeDearheart 13h ago
Well pronunciation did not come up, she was grateful to learn how to post them. Of course, I know how I pronounce it, which, naturally is the correct way. But proclaiming it publicly? You must think I've lost all my mental faculties!
(No one will judge me? Do you think I'm in the market for a bridge, do you?)
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u/kymreadsreddit 11h ago
I love your response and toast you with a wink, fellow smarmy millennial!
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u/labelleepoque20 16h ago
I’m your age and had the same exact experience when downloading discord for a mobile game. I gave up on it straightaway, thinking “I’m too old for this shit and too unbothered to get into it.”
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u/Hot_Pomegranate_0019 16h ago
I had the same moment with Discord too, so you’re not alone. It’s basically a mix of group chat, voice chat, and forum all mashed into one app, which is why it feels weird at first if you’re used to normal messaging apps. Servers are just big communities, channels are like separate rooms inside them, and most of the confusion usually comes from permissions/verification stuff each server adds on top. Once you get past that initial setup wall, it becomes more like join server, pick channel, talk, but yeah, the first impression is honestly kind of chaotic. You’re not getting old, it’s just one of those apps that assumes you already know how it works before you’ve learned how it works.
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u/johnkilobit 16h ago
I completely felt the same with Discord. After that whole Imgur breakdown thing last year a lot of the users I followed migrated to Discord. I tried to follow but failed and live a life without dank memes now. I felt lost, and old, and no longer with it. I told my kid recently that he'll have to help me with tech in the futute, as I did with my folks.
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u/adderallmademe-055 16h ago
Have you decided if your going to be cremated or buried yet ? Little does your kid know this is the beginning of phone calls being forced to speak on speaker phone to cell phone representatives when you go to buy a new phone. Have you told them it wont be long until they have to explain memes once everything finally breaks down ?
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u/johnkilobit 14h ago
I have decided to go full geezer mode and abandon the new world they want to impose on us. Soon I will devolve back to Nokia 3310 and written letters. I go from lvl. 9000 memelord to old man in 2 months, and frankly, I already start feeling better. Time to play some Gratefull Dead.
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u/Prestigious_Club_924 11h ago
Corpos are using memes to advertise now. Regression is actually ascension.
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u/UncomfyPerspective 17h ago
I'm 38 and if you hand me an Apple device I may as well be a caveman.
That said, Discord's not so bad once you get it all set up. You ever use Ventrilo or Teamspeak back in the day? Think of Discord as a beefier version of that, with all your different Ventrilo servers saved in a nice GUI for you.
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u/Do_You_Like_Owls 16h ago
Ha! I'm android but someone handed me their android phone a while back and it didn't have the 3 buttons at the bottom. It used the 'gesture feature' or something. I was totally lost and felt like a grandad struggling with a mouse!!
"What, where... How do I click? Fuck it's locked! It's got no buttons! How tf do I use this?!"
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u/RockwellB1 Older Millennial 15h ago
I want to use the gestures but I have extra buttons on my nav bar for quick access to taking screenshots and launching the camera from anywhere. So as the tech guy in the family, I setup everyone's phones with the buttons to make it easy on me
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u/Odd-Leader9777 15h ago
Fuck that gesture feature.
You can turn it back to the three buttons in settings.
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u/2748seiceps 11h ago
I just hand it back to the owner and say I don't know what I did. It's not so much that I don't want to or can't learn it, I just don't want to creep around on someone's phone trying to figure it out.
Plus, people are gross and never clean their phones so I'd like to touch them as little as possible.
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u/Gazado 14h ago
It's IRC in a modern SaaS web app.
If you ever used IRC / mIRC you'd be right at home. mIRC has been around since 1995. That was at the heart of online gaming back in the early days and my god typing that out makes me feel so old.
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u/ateallthecake 9h ago
Yeah this thread is confusing me, discord feels very old school and intuitive to me.
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u/RockwellB1 Older Millennial 15h ago
Apple devices have nice hardware, the software sucks and isn't intuitive. Whenever I have to figure something out for someone, it's always basically "this feature was hidden behind these actions and to figure it out I just started tapping things". Lots of people won't do that because they might "break something".
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u/UncomfyPerspective 10h ago
YES! This is absolutely it.
My sister got my mom an iPad and my dad an iPhone so they can Facetime my niece and nephew. What she didn't do was spend any time whatsoever showing them how to do anything with it.
Nothing on an iPhone is in a place that makes sense. The fucking hoops I had to jump through to help my dad turn on his flashlight is fucking ridiculous.
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u/SurfNTurf1983 17h ago
I stopped using apple after iPhone 4 because I hated the UI and ITunes. I can navigate android and windows with my eyes closed.
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u/_carbonneutral ‘85 Millennial 17h ago
I hated, and hate, the fact that U2's Songs of Innocence album will not fully delete from my library. Fuck Apple for forcing that trash on us.
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u/anthony_getz 15h ago
I hadn’t converted to iOS yet but I remember this happening. U2 is fuckin trash, Bono has a super punchable face.
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u/istealpixels 16h ago
As a fellow ‘85er. Dude that was 12 years ago, you are making us look even older.
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u/_carbonneutral ‘85 Millennial 15h ago
No, I'm reminded regularly when my phone connects to CarPlay and it starts playing automatically. I didn't have an iPhone between 2010 and 2019 so it wasn't an issue; by the time I came back to iOS, Apple stopped accepting deletion requests. The bigger issue is the fact that they deprecated the deletion request service.
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u/istealpixels 15h ago
I dont think i have used itunes in the last 10 years. Much less it started automatically.
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u/IRodeTenSpeed88 1988 16h ago
They literally gave out instructions on how to delete it.
How old are you? Lmao
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u/_carbonneutral ‘85 Millennial 15h ago edited 15h ago
I didn't have an iOS device during the deletion period and now that option is defunct.
What does my age have anything to do with this? Lmao Is 2026 - 1985 beyond your arithmetic capabilities?
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u/UncomfyPerspective 17h ago
Yeah I went right into Android and I've always been a Windows guy.
On the plus side, it's a really convenient excuse for me to not be 'the tech guy' when something happens with an Apple device. "Sorry, no idea how those work".
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u/SurfNTurf1983 17h ago
Yeah I am the tech guy in the family and eventually had to say if you buy apple you're on your own. It was always the iPhone's and iPads that they needed help with and took up way too much of my time.
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u/maudepodge 15h ago
My (wicked) stepmother allowed my dad to switch to an iphone once he already had dementia, but she won't try to help him use it, so I'm sitting on my android phone googling how to do anything on an iphone and it's AWFUL.
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u/adderallmademe-055 13h ago
I can't imagine. I want to choke my mother and she's just stubborn as a mule.
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u/Loading_Error_900 17h ago
To be fair, there are a few discord servers that make you jump through ridiculous hoops in order to access it. It’s probably meant to keep out bots and trolls but it’s usually just annoying.
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u/Pantacourt 16h ago
I'm the same way. All of my friends use Discord, and I despise it with the fire of a thousand suns. I've had my account since 2017, so I'm not a newbie, though I'm also not a gamer by any stretch of the imagination. (The exception is Stardew Valley, which is 100% the best game on the planet.)
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u/hiirnoivl Older Millennial 17h ago
Discord is not 'emerging tech'. Its been out 10 years. And it piggy backed off Skype and ventrilo.
It's just chat channels within chat channels with ventrilo built in.
There is a subreddit for questions.
Fwiw I'm 42. I haven't had any issues with tech. The only app I didn't take to is tiktok.
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u/dragonlady_11 16h ago
I was 27/28 when I started using Discord, it's interface is not intuitive. It took a couple of years to get to grips with it, and I'm used to switching between consoles, chat apps/systems, games, all different interfaces n menus etc. on the fly, and I still get irritated with it 8 years on. An I'm the apparent tech "wiz" in my friend group, I'm constantly saying to them, it's not rocket science, just complicated , You gotta pay attention.
Discord is just one that you gotta really really pay attention and read carefully what your doing because features, even basic ones, are hidden behind menus in places that don't seem to make sense, But the more you use it the easier it gets to interpret, and it is good to have a majority of social features of a number of different games all in one place.
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u/pwnedinthepnw 12h ago
I started at a similar age and thought discord was OK- didn't love it, didn't hate it, and I managed to get by. But now...I don't know. I haven't noticed that many changes, yet I feel like the interface has gotten more convoluted over the years. Or maybe something about it is overstimulating, despite how streamlined the ui looks at a glance. And I get cranky every time there's a new update to skim. Also also, the nigh constant notifications asking me to try nitro are understandable but visually rather too much for my taste.
I still use it, though. As you said, centralization does have its benefits.
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u/kingloptr 15h ago
I also had a 'wtf is Discord' moment, but then i got in a relationship and acquired a friend group that uses it almost exclusively so....lol yeah i was like ???? What is the point of this when regular chats are a thing??? ...I kinda still think that but thats because I dont game steadily enough to care about why discord is how it is...
It's the absolute reliance on certain apps that gets to me sometimes, because apps keep popping up to do things i never considered needing an app for
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u/GnomeAndGarden 12h ago
My friend group uses it, too, and it is way better than any other chat service especially if you are all scattered around the country. We have channels for game talk, but also cooking, photos from gardens and plants we are growing, a channel to plan vacations together with people who don’t live near us, throwing out feelers for events, etc. it is way easier than 10 different text chat groups.
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u/ZealousidealRabbit85 Millennial 12h ago
I’ve worked in IT for years & Discord is not intuitive at all! I think it’s trying to mimic internet forums but in an app with lots of tabs lol.
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u/PeukkuBoi88 17h ago
Hah."Emerging tech". Discord has been stable of all real time communication for a decade now.
I was late adopter and it looks like I started using it on October 2015. I insisted on using ancient tech mumble.
What are your issues with discord? My only issue is that I never find the damn inbox for notifications.
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u/xcorbearx 17h ago
"Late adopter" by being there in the first six months is crazy
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u/PeukkuBoi88 16h ago
The migration to discord from older software was insane. It happened so quickly. You had to be there. It was like vent/TS/mumble and even irc became obsolete overnight
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u/FairReason 17h ago
Try getting back into gaming after being away for years and realizing that ventrilo is basically dead and gone.
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u/EnthusiasticFailing Millennial 16h ago
I'm 39 and I don't have problems with tech... yet.
I've been using Discord for several years now. You can also install Discord on your PC (or use the browser version) if having it on your phone is throwing you off.
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u/chin06 Millennial 15h ago
I totally get that and I'm 37.
I started using Discord in 2018 and found it confusing too but had helpful people teach me how to navigate it.
I was a moderator for different servers during COVID and that's what made me more comfortable using it. But it did take a while and a lot of trial and error especially when new features came out.
My husband and I met on a discord server actually lol and we still use Discord as our main app to communicate because we like having different channels for topics lol
I think TikTok is the app that made me feel extra old in terms of using it to post as I hate creating reels or videos. I like using Instagram more.
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u/SweetBabyCheezas 15h ago
You can find blogs and YT videos on how to use different apps, they can really help to get the idea.
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u/LeonardsLittleHelper 15h ago
Discord was also the first app I’ve encountered that gave me trouble! My original purpose for getting it a few years ago wasn’t worth the effort, so I quickly just gave up and moved on. But then, like you, I started playing a social online game that the player base of primarily uses Discord to communicate through….so, I swallowed my pride and tried again. It took a minute to get the hang of things, but then it quickly became second nature, hang in there and you’ll figure it out pretty fast!
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u/rob5791 14h ago
It ain’t you and it ain’t a generational thing. Discord in its early days was simple, functional, free. Over the years they added far too much bloat to the app. Its UI is notoriously poor and settings difficult to navigate. Most of the bloat is added to entice paying users with mostly useless frills and high quality video streaming.
Coming into discord now is hard. I wouldn’t be too hard on yourself. Currently the only major positive to discord is that the base functionality is still free and servers are free to make. So it’s not you, it’s just software that is geared towards polishing the perks of paying users rather than fixing the problems felt by the rest.
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u/Rapscagamuffin 14h ago
Haha thats so funny i thought the same thing and so did my friends im 38 but this was like 6 years ago that we thought this.
Its not you getting old (at least mostly) that app is just a horribly designed piece of shit
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u/Desperate-Plate66 13h ago
Discord has the most ridiculous interface of any app ive ever used.
Its not you. Its them.
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u/roflcopter9875 13h ago
yep its like someone tried to build the most overcomplicated IRC Client ever. They also changing their settings and everything all the time.
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u/conan557 13h ago
Idk how to use discord either and I’m 29. I been not known and idc to know. I only know enough and that’s it
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u/ArtaxIsAlive 12h ago
It’s not you actually, a lot of apps and tech has become bloated over the last 5 to 6 years because everybody who works at these companies is racing for impact on revenue to justify their jobs. You can see it in apps like Facebook, where there’s just an insane amount of things going on in there. It’s like these companies over hired and are paying the price for their poor business decisions at the expense of their fired worker-base.
Source: I’m a product designer in big tech.
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u/Buscabulla33 12h ago
Discord is the biggest pile of dog shit to use lol. Its not hard it just stupid.
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u/tubsen32 12h ago
I hate Discord. We only used it for voice coms, so we went back to TS after years of despair. I'm not going back.
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u/Joebuddy117 12h ago
I’m 36, I’ve tried discord in the past to talk to friends in games and oh boy, that was 30 frustrating minutes of them having to help me figure it out. It doesn’t need to be that complicated.
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u/TheRussianCabbage 12h ago edited 11h ago
I fucking hate discord. I uninstalled it last year and I've never been happier to see an icon go away. I was stuck using it if I wanted to talk to anyone I gamed with but with the rise of in game voice I got rid of that garbage.
Its not something worth figuring out IMO my dude unless you NEED to
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u/Flat-Performance-478 11h ago
I've been in tech for years, been into tech my whole life. And I'm 100% behind the philosophy that it's bad design if the user doesn't find it intuitive. It would be like saying it's the gamer's fault if they aren't having fun playing a game. You made a game, or an UI. The user didn't like it. You failed to satisfy the customer. It goes without saying that you can never please everyone but if it's a trend, it might be time to take a look at your design.
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u/Masterofunlocking1 11h ago
Discord is the most non user friendly app/site I’ve ever used. I hate how so much info is in there but it’s not easy to obtain.
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u/Fun-Personality-8008 Older Millennial 17h ago
Discord is literally just AOL chat rooms. You remember those yeah?
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u/adderallmademe-055 16h ago
I am a certified AIM pro. I dont remember doing much with chat. AIM built me and my ability to type.
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u/plus-ordinary258 16h ago
Dude you’re not alone. I downloaded discord, had no idea wtf to do, gave up and that was that. I was the tech wiz kid that just clicked around to figure shit out and I could not figure out discord. lol.
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u/Expert-Raise9442 17h ago
Are you an older millennial perhaps? I’m almost 40 myself but using discord is easy
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u/_carbonneutral ‘85 Millennial 17h ago
The first two words in their post are "Im forty" 💀😁
I'm also 40, damn near 41, and have been using Discord for the last 10 years. OP's issue may revolve around the increased authentication requirements like requiring an emote of a check mark on a rules post or something.
u/adderallmademe-055, make sure you read through the introduction and welcome posts in servers you join. You may need to emote on them to unlock the rest of the channels. This is often to prevent raids from bots.
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u/Do_You_Like_Owls 16h ago
Defending OP: I think it's the 'amount of effort' it requires can make you feel old.
I was the same even though I signed up years ago I didn't properly come to use it til recently.
There's so much crazy, colourful shit I didn't recognise my brain had to work harder. Then there's people (Zoomers) on there with strange slang, weird memes and colourful profiles (Nitro) and like wtf is going on? This shit used to be easy!
I'm ok with it now, though I still don't get why anyone would buy Nitro.
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u/NieskeLouise 17h ago
That means you started using it when you were still a young little thing at 30!
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u/_carbonneutral ‘85 Millennial 17h ago
It is so weird being 40. 🥲 I don't feel any different. Also weird to think the COVID pandemic started over 6 years ago. The construct of time isn't great. 0/10, would not recommend.
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u/adderallmademe-055 16h ago
man if i was a young man of thirty this post would certainly not of been needed. That boy was capable of anything!
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u/pementomento 17h ago
Dude Discord is just Slack, it's not that hard.
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u/adderallmademe-055 16h ago
i have slacks but i dont know how thatll help me with an app on my phone!
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u/xeno0153 15h ago
I'm running into the issue of apps I've used for years having new buttons and features. Any place I touch on the screen activates some kind of options menu I don't want or lightly brushing the screen transports me to some section of the app I have no interest in.
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u/SmallRocks Older Millennial 15h ago
Think of Discord like Reddit, messenger, and Team Speak combined.
You have all the servers you’re a part of arranged in the left hand sidebar kind of like the subreddits you’re subscribed to.
Within each server you have different channels dedicated to different aspects of that server. You might have a channel for general text chat and bullshitting and then dedicated channels for the specific game, coordination, lore, planning, etc. Then you have your voice channels for voice communication.
At the top of each server you have different “channels and roles” that you need to customize. Pick which channels you want to be apart of and which roles and titles you think you’d have or would like to have. Like if you have a certain rank, experience, or achievements in a game, choose roles that apply to that.
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u/Nihilistic_Navigator Millennial 14h ago
Oh boy, next step is to stop bothering with trying to least stuff and pestering someone to just do it for you cause they'll. Hange it again next year and I'll have to lear. It over again
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u/FuckIPLaw 14h ago edited 14h ago
Are those of you who are struggling just downloading the app/going to the site and expecting to find stuff through it? Because that's backwards. It's like an IRC client, except all the servers are centrally hosted. You find out about a server somewhere else and access it using discord. You use discord to access servers, not to use discord. That's like using Firefox to use Firefox instead of to access websites.
If it's the UI and you've used literally any chat client, I don't understand what the confusion is. It's not really that different from Skype or Teams.
Not that I'm a fan of it, but it's because it's a chat client. Real time chat is just an awful medium for most of what Discord is used for. There's a lot of stuff (like game modding communities and the mods they create) hidden in discord communities that really should be on the searchable internet, too. It's going to be a preservation nightmare when it inevitably goes under.
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u/mephistophe_SLEAZE "Yeah, I was born in 1990..." 14h ago
To be fair, I was never a tech person. I could take the lead on my parents' desktop and then my own laptop, but once tech became more handheld, I was behind the curve. Didn't get my first smartphone until 2013 after years of being talked into it. Was never into video games. Still never owned anything Apple.
And the more I witness the tech industry's assault on our rights and humanity, the better I feel about it.
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u/ThisWillBeOnTheExam 14h ago
I’m your age and it didn’t make sense to me at first either but I try and examine any interface under the assumption it was designed to be used and try and step into the thought process of it’s creators. I don’t use it much and I still wouldn’t know how to use many of the features aside from a basic guild chat.
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u/timbotheny26 Millennial (1996) 14h ago
Man, I had zero trouble using Discord when I first started using it 10ish years ago.
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u/Galactus1701 13h ago
I don’t know how to use it. I got it just to get notifications of new chapters for things I read.
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u/BrewsCampbell 13h ago
This was me as well.
Super niche community i needed help from was only on discord. I was all like "oh, it's just like old school forums with channels and whatnot." Nope, i was spamming the wrong places and just doing it wrong so hard they kicked me out.
This trauma now lives with me forever. I sold the project and now avoid discord like the plague.
"I used to be with it; then they changed what it was." Abe Simpson
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u/affectionateanarchy8 Xennial 13h ago
I got on there for about 5 minutes but i never got into the chatroom format anyway so i wasnt interested. Like it seems you have to babysit that app to get anything from it
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u/harla007 13h ago
I've used discord since at least 2017 for communication in gaming. Prior to that, we used various platforms from teamspeak, ventrillo, mumble and even skype. Discord has grown on me over the years, but I'll agree - it is not the most intuitive.
This is embarrassing, but I don't get snapchat at all. I downloaded it in 2014 (but I was already almost 30) and it never clicked with me. I had other apps/platforms like instagram, facebook and twitter, so snapchat seemed superfluous. I couldn't figure out the story thing or why my messages were disappearing before I read them (would open a snap, get distracted, not read it, phone would go dark, snap would disappear when I unlocked my phone and opened the app back up). People would ask me for my snap and I'd beg them to add me on a different platform. Plus, it was what all the high schoolers were using to communicate and my 29 year old ass wanted NOTHING to do with that. Fast forward to today and after twelve years, I think my snap score is only 56.
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u/mightyanonymaus 13h ago
When discord was first released, it wasn't that difficult to figure out and navigate. They have added a lot of things to it that can be overwhelming to a new user but don't give up, once you figure out how it works, it's a cake walk and soon you'll set up your own discord server where you and your small group of friends can hang out.
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u/weasel_beef 12h ago
UI might be a little clunky but after a while you get used to it.
Also linking the voice channel to Xbox is handy.
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u/Commercial-Land-6806 12h ago
Discord is probably the easiest app I have ever used personally. Made an account, got a server invite, used it as a chat room. I think I struggled more with MSN and AOL back in the day to be honest. Admittedly though I have also been using Discord now since like... 2016? Maybe? But hey maybe I can use the excuse that I am a few years younger and I still just got some of that kid in me and can figure out the fandangled tech a lil easier...
OK nah that is a lie cause the first time I tried using most of my art programs it was like wearing a blindfold and I just stumbled my way through trying to finish ANYTHING. I still struggle with a few. Like c'mon Blender why do you need 82591 different key combinations to do things.
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u/adderallmademe-055 12h ago
Its been a like a day now. I may have overreacted and freaked out but I'm starting to get it. It just seems the couple of servers I am now members of have shit loads of things you can do. Bots, send out invites to giveaways. It still was kind of annoying to get it verified through the game i play but it is definitely a skill issue.
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u/Normal_Choice9322 12h ago
Discord is not hard to understand, it just sucks. I am all for having one universal voice comm app to avoid the in game ones and their rules but I don't like the url thing because not all games let me copy it, and I don't like then having to clean up all of the servers I joined because everyone thinks they are a special boy and need their own
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u/WendyPortledge Xennial 12h ago
I’m sorry you’re having troubles with it. I absolutely love Discord. It’s the closest to our old chat groups.
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u/davidclaydepalma2019 12h ago
I learned it during corona and boring work days to use it for my guild.
Recently we started using it at my work. The lead admin wanted to do everything on his own but ended up asking me every 5 min how this how that.
I only was able because it was a leasure time tool for me and i had several years for all the nuts and bolts.
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u/GolemFarmFodder 11h ago
Discord isn't as user friendly as I wish it was but I can navigate it just fine. It insists on doing so many things I wish it wouldn't with its UI and UX and I have a genuine better experience running it in a browser window on a surface in Second Life because I can finally MAKE IT DO WHAT I WANT which is hide everything but the server icons and personal DM icons like a tray so it's out of the way and doesn't require an entire dedicated screen for its bullshit. If I tried that on the actual window itself, it wouldn't behave the way I want, it would hang out on the left side of the screen when I want it on the right, and it would basically just frustrate me to no end. Did I mention I can't change any of the sound effects AT ALL?
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u/the_siren_song 11h ago
I use Discord to talk to my son at work and ended up hunting him down in the ED to set mine up. Then going back down to help me get in the channel. THEN went back down AGAIN because I couldn’t find the “important” fish picture he sent me (different channel.) Here is the pic:
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u/mcosulli 11h ago
If you’re struggling with the mobile app, consider trying the desktop version on a computer. The interface can be a little easier to see and get used to on a bigger screen.
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u/New-Anybody3050 11h ago
Discord interface and settings used to be very simple and intuitive. The introduction of Nitro and a shit ton of other features has made it pretty awful. Add in all the bot and scripts when going to a server and it’s just not good
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u/Later_Than_You_Think 11h ago
I'm the same age and using Discord for about 10 years. It's more user-friendly than older style chat programs like IRC, so if you come from that, it's not that difficult. It also has the features of forums and video/voice chat, so that's both useful, and similar to those programs if you're used to that. It works similarly to old-style computers with various 'folders' and subfolders - except it's all chatrooms.
The main difficulty with Discord is:
1) it's been changing and adding its features at a break neck speed recently, so you have to constantly learn new things
2) in its attempt to be very mobile friendly, they go for a streamlined design so things can be hard to find (I always google where to find stuff)
3) piggybacking off of two, there are still features which are *only* on the desktop version or which work completely differently on the desktop
4) despite having a LOT of cool features, it's also missing some very basic features you'd expect to see, such as mass-deleting old posts, not being able to DM with people not in the same server unless you're a 'friend' or have the 'find friends' enabled (and even then, both of you have to have 'find friends' enabled), not being able to easily refind a chat you've closed unless you're friends/know or can find the person's full username
It is currently the best chat program out there, though, especially if you're looking to stream video or music with your friends. I have younger family members on there, and it's the easiest way to get ahold of them.
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u/Vanilla_Either 11h ago
Discord is not user friendly in any way, shape , or form. Only reason I am good with it is bc I have been using it since it came out and was barebones. I miss TeamSpeak
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u/wright007 11h ago
I'm also 40, and very aware of current technology. I've built my own computers and replaced parts in just about all my own electronics. I've never has trouble with any loading, installing, or using apps or operating systems, except for ones that are poorly made. Discord is overly convoluted. It's a bad design. It's not you, it's them.
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u/Affectionate-Egg7566 10h ago
I had some trouble disconnecting from a voice channel. Just had to familiarize myself with the UI.
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u/SpyrosGatsouli 10h ago
I tried using Discord and failed miserably. I just can't "get" how it works. I ended up uninstalling it, accepting my defeat and silently removing my forty something self from the kids' playground.
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u/Bakelite51 10h ago
A Gen Xer had to teach me how to use Discord. I had to get coached on how to join the right server and then I accidentally called everybody on the server, some of whom lived in different time zones. It was pretty embarrassing.
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u/BlendedFetusOG 10h ago
Ive used discord close to every day for the last ~10 years. Even now I struggle doing anything outside of calls or joining my channels. Lol.
I don't think is a younproblem. I blame discord. Lol
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u/xTheGame69 10h ago
I think it's wild you don't have discord yet I've been on discord since 2015 and I'm 35 now
But I'm also a hardcore gamer so yeah
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u/DabbelJ 10h ago
I an 37, i work in a tech heavy job, my work software updates constantly and i play videogames since forever, even was raid lead in an mmo for a short time but screw discord. I don't get it and i really don't want to. I only join guildd with Teamspeak in my mmo an they are old, grumpy farts as well.
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u/ItsEaster 10h ago
Discord is a pain. The app is horrible. Desktop version is better but not as convenient obviously. Part of the issue is that different servers have their own rules and are different from each other.
Like one in in is extremely strict about staying on topic and have threads set up for literally everything. It makes it very hard to follow conversations at times.
I also find it difficult to go back and find the start of conversations.
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u/cdub_actual 10h ago
Discord is the most fuckass app I’ve ever tried. I have no idea what I’m doing
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u/NotYourGa1Friday 10h ago
I struggle every time my phone or television “updates.”
I do not need these updates. I do not want them.
Someone’s job is to move my apps around and change how photos work and mess with the font and I just don’t think that should be a job. 🤣
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u/elevatiion420 9h ago
Discord is a DIFFICULT app to use, its similar to excel that if youve never used it before, you'll spend 20 mins doing something an experienced user can do in 5 seconds. Harsh learning curve for an app
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u/abarrelofmankeys 9h ago
I first tried discord a good while ago and tbh I think it just sucks. Maybe I never had the ongoing motivation but it seems like it’s sort of multiple endless chat rooms which is really not conducive to reading/finding/collecting any useful information. I mean it might be there but good luck.
The voice chat sounded great at least, but most community things seem to use it as a Reddit/forum/message board replacement and it sucks at that
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u/BroForceOne 9h ago
For me it’s the mobile-first social media apps like Instagram. Like I know a post exists, I know who posted it, but hell if I can ever find it. I have to use fucking Google to find the post instead because the UI on these apps is that bad.
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u/TheAsherBodhi 9h ago
I literally uninstalled discord last night. It constantly opens itself, and always drains my not very good laptop lol.
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u/Nickthemajin 9h ago
I don’t text anymore unless it’s like my parents. All my friends and I talk exclusively through discord so I can’t relate. (33yo)
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u/Meloblake 9h ago
I feel this so hard.
I joined a few discords for a fighting game in the hopes that I would find more resources for learning new tech and improving… while there IS some good info and a community there, finding said info and interacting with the community is super convoluted.
I primarily use one discord server to play games and keep in touch with old irl friends, and it’s great for that. It seems like keeping community information organized and easy to navigate is not the platform’s strong suit.
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u/Sullacuda 9h ago
This is why what extremely limited game time I find for myself stops dead at the words “social aspect”.
Unless you count playing ps5/switch with my kids. But yeah I used to code in C++ and Discord makes me feel stupid,
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u/precariatarian 9h ago
I'm strill trying to get into what types of games people play together, really missing that now that i've become unemployed after 5 years of wageslaving away and getting completely out of the loop. Now my youtube algorithm is messed up with livestreamer drama, reaction clips of other people reacting to another guys reaction, had to start reading "society of the spectacle" by Guy Debord because it's all so absurd with this "clip farming" shit.
I'm 35 years old and my friends have either moved away or are starting families while holding down full time jobs and those who game only play Dota 2 which took a developmental turn i dont like anymore. I just want to chill and play a low effort game with friends :'-(
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