Reddit Can Cure Boredom for UT Tyler Students

     

     There seems to be an unlikely paradox in existence for college students.  Even though we are taking part in a unique academic adventure that seems to bring new kinds of excitement on a daily basis, there are sometimes days where boredom will be prevalent.  Whether it is due to cancelled classes, bad weather, or just a lack of plans for the weekend, being bored in college will happen from time to time.  If this happens to you, a special website serves as an excellent boredom-repellent: Reddit.

     

     Reddit is a social news and entertainment aggregate designed in early 2005 by two computer programmers who wished to provide a source of entertainment for a diverse online audience.  Whether you are interested in gaming, movies and television, domestic and foreign news, various literature, and thousands more, Reddit is a great website for any college student looking to broaden their horizon.

   

     Large amounts of people have never heard of Reddit, but if they have, they might know it as a source of creepy online members who take pictures of their cats in the name of internet fame.  That is merely the surface of Reddit, however.  A plethora of information and entertainment wishes for discovery, all on one website.

     

     For college students in particular, as previously mentioned, Reddit is a great time-filler.  You could be looking for a good laugh in between classes, following a new story about your favorite video game or TV show, or possibly keeping track of breaking news from foreign parts of the world.  I would not recommend browsing Reddit during class, however.  As much fun as the website may be, you will never learn anything.  Seriously, this website is addicting.

     

     If you have never been to Reddit, and are interested in looking into its vast arsenal of awesomeness, here are some pro-tips:

1.       Lurking is OK, but you should definitely make a Reddit account.  This way you can customize your Reddit experience through subscribing to different subreddits (topic threads), and give karma to different posts.

2.       Karma: up votes and down votes that determine the validity, relevance, and value of a post from another Redditor.  View Karma the same as “Likes” or “Retweets” on Facebook and Twitter, respectively.

3.       There is explicit content on Reddit; there is no reason to deny it. You will know it by the “NSFW” tag next to the post, standing for “Not Safe for Work,” but it applies to college classes as well.  There is even a new option from the Reddit moderators that allows for at-work Redditors to browse safely without any troubles.  

4.       Explore comment threads!  It really is the heart and soul of Reddit.  The original post will be enjoyable, but the conversation that follows is always interesting.  It can provide more information about the particular subject.  For example, if there is a breaking news story about an event overseas, the comment thread always brings more information and breaking coverage.

     
     The rest of Reddit deserves your exploration.  For college students, it is frankly one of the best online resources, not only to cure boredom, but also to give you information about the world around you.  Whether it is just for a laugh, or to find out about unknown topics, Reddit truly is a college student’s best friend.