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Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

bits.blogs.nytimes.com

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Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#11

Post by marquis »

greghinch wrote: post #10

I don't get why developers are so mad at Twitter. Why is making a Twitter client the only project you can do? If you really can make a piece of software that provides a better experience for Twitter, certainly you have the ability to make something else. And if you're anything like me and every dev I know, you have half a dozen or more project ideas rattling around in your head. Make one of those and let Twitter go.

I'm guessing it's also an emotional issue: someone loves Twitter, they use it to communicate in ways they couldn't before. But they are frustrated by Twitter's own apps, and wanted to find a better way to use this service they love.

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#12

Post by dcotter »

Yeah, the whole restaurant metaphor was distracting. Twitter has always seemed to me more like an infrastructure project: we build the highways, you supply the vehicles and the destinations. The thing I've never understood is how that model is supposed to be sustainable -- in a real infrastructure project, everyone chips in, through taxes. With Twitter, no one chips in and everyone complains about the ads. How is that supposed to work?

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#13

Post by nikcub »

Good tech writing is about being able to explain complex technology issues clearly to a broad audience without reverting to cheap, simple and inaccurate metaphors.

To somebody who isn't familiar with the recent issues concerning Twitter this post doesn't teach you anything.

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#15

Post by ek »

I'm somewhat glad to see a mainstream news piece covering HN material like this getting slammed by the community - I know people who still subscribe to real newspapers (of the local variety) and am amazed at how terrible and slow their coverage of most things is. This is especially apparent in instances like this one, where we've been having a much more coherent discussion about this for days now.

edit: Just to add another anecdote about the failings of mainstream news, last July there was an article in the business section of the paper about that blog post about the fake Apple stores in China, which appeared at least a week after the link appeared on HN and with unintelligent, spun commentary attached.

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#16

Post by rahoulb »

marquis wrote: post #11
greghinch wrote: post #10

I don't get why developers are so mad at Twitter. Why is making a Twitter client the only project you can do? If you really can make a piece of software that provides a better experience for Twitter, certainly you have the ability to make something else. And if you're anything like me and every dev I know, you have half a dozen or more project ideas rattling around in your head. Make one of those and let Twitter go.

I'm guessing it's also an emotional issue: someone loves Twitter, they use it to communicate in ways they couldn't before. But they are frustrated by Twitter's own apps, and wanted to find a better way to use this service they love.

And so much of twitter's functionality was "contributed" by those same passionate early users - hashtags, @replies etc.

And don't forget if it wasn't for third party developers building their own clients, we wouldn't have the official Twitter clients on iOS or Mac.

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#17

Post by [deleted] »

JonnieCache wrote: post #9
freejack wrote: post #3

Ugh. I don't know about the rest of you - that post felt patronizing. This stuff is complicated enough without layering on massive metaphors that shudder under the weight of the context they are trying to convey. It would be awesome if someone took a crack at a similar explanation without all the pandering.

It almost felt like a meta-analogy about the inherent limitations of analogy.

[deleted]

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#18

Post by state »

freejack wrote: post #3

Ugh. I don't know about the rest of you - that post felt patronizing. This stuff is complicated enough without layering on massive metaphors that shudder under the weight of the context they are trying to convey. It would be awesome if someone took a crack at a similar explanation without all the pandering.

I would guess that a lot of the readers of the Times this is really helpful. I don't think most people understand this stuff at all, and the analogy is better than nothing.

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#19

Post by shinratdr »

greghinch wrote: post #10

I don't get why developers are so mad at Twitter. Why is making a Twitter client the only project you can do? If you really can make a piece of software that provides a better experience for Twitter, certainly you have the ability to make something else. And if you're anything like me and every dev I know, you have half a dozen or more project ideas rattling around in your head. Make one of those and let Twitter go.

Ask Tapbots what makes them more money: The four projects they launched before TweetBot, the aforementioned "project ideas rattling around in your head" or TweetBot. I have little doubt as to the answer you'll get.

Developers are mad at Twitter because Twitter gave them a platform to develop on, one that their users enjoyed and made them lots of money, and then yanked it away. Simply telling people to "let twitter go" is ridiculous. Just because you have another idea doesn't mean it will be anywhere close to as lucrative and sustainable as a Twitter client.

Just like the article says, nobody owes anyone in this situation. Everyone was basically in the wrong. However, devs are still going to be mad at twitter. You don't have to feel entitled to something to be annoyed when it's taken away.

Re: Why Are People So Upset With Twitter? Let's Grab a Bite

#20

Post by gdubs »

freejack wrote: post #3

Ugh. I don't know about the rest of you - that post felt patronizing. This stuff is complicated enough without layering on massive metaphors that shudder under the weight of the context they are trying to convey. It would be awesome if someone took a crack at a similar explanation without all the pandering.

Agreed.

"Metaphors and similes do nothing but obscure the beauty of technology" -- Charles Petzold, "CODE"

And more bluntly:

"I dislike allegory wherever I smell it." -- J.R.R. Tolkien

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