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When we get Komooted

bikepacking.com

81–90 of 275 posts

Re: When we get Komooted

#81
post #7
post #3

I felt betrayed as well. Just paid €30,- the month or so before because I liked the app and the service, but I also needed more maps. It offered great value to me. If I knew 80% of the employees would be fired, inevitably leading to a degrading service, I would have never done that. It is weird, but I do not trust the app any more in planning routes either. Sometimes i have the feeling bugs in the planning part alrea…

The article mentions one example: https://wanderer.to/ . Haven't used it personally but seems promising (albeit less "social" than something like Strava).

One only need a web server to share gpx files really.

Planning routes can be easily done offline with desktop apps. Don't even start with mobile use, I have never seen a web based tool where you could plan a route by tapping on a smartphone screen without pulling your hair out of desperation.

Re: When we get Komooted

#82
post #44

Next years article: When We Get Bikepacked Never believe a company that you are part of a community if the content you create for them cannot be exported and published somewhere else. I am especially sceptical if someone says they never sell.

bikepacking.com doesn't look like it's a for-profit company, in their about page.

It is. And it is a media company, not a "community".

Re: When we get Komooted

#83
post #35

> Komoot, to them, was more than a job; it was a mission and purpose. Many had accepted below-average salaries and uprooted their lives to commit to the outdoor lifestyle and the dream job. Suddenly, they were left scrambling for new work and visa sponsors with just a few months’ pay as severance. The six bosses, meanwhile, pocketed an estimated 20 to 30 million euros each. That’s why, and call me unethical, I never…

As a warning: every time I’ve pushed hard, then had to rein it in and do less, I’ve gotten fired.

There’s nothing you can do that makes you irreplaceable, even if you’re the only one in the world that can do it.

It’s fine if you want to stay in your happy place as the only one that can do X and then keep selling them on the value you provide and how you’re doing big things. But, nothing lasts.

Don’t burn out, but sitting on your ass is a bad strategy.

Re: When we get Komooted

#84
post #80

As someone who always rejected Komoot and stuck to OpenStreetMap, and had to justify that decision multiple times: I'll play them the world's smallest violin.

That's a bit like saying you don't need a guide book because you have a globe at home.

replace globe with a complete set of detailled maps.

Re: When we get Komooted

#86
post #8

I’d love a founder perspective on this. If they kept saying “we won’t sell” and then sell, is that just plain breaking all promises and selling out, as this article suggests? Or was there more going on?

Promises only engage those that believe them.

Re: When we get Komooted

#87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Recommend any alternatives?

RideWithGPS. No affiliation with them, but have been paying for service for years. Far less glitzy than Komoot/Strava and far less paid advertising, but for my money it's better for route planning - particularly long distance off-road - than anything else I've come across [0]. [0] a) For instance Komoot's exports for GPS head units were not accurate enough to be as helpful with picking/finding faint/overgrown trails…

paying for service for years

Isn't this the main point of the article? The community feeds such a service with knowledge and in the users and up paying a lot for the all the knowledge they contributed themselves (possibly after an acquisition, leaving the original philosophy behind). The article mentions https://wanderer.to/, which leads to a community-owned data set.

Of course, some new federated service is most likely going to have a subpar user experience, but we will never get there if we are only feeding into semi-closed ecosystems.

Re: When we get Komooted

#88
Until capitalism is fixed or replaced with a better system (not communism) it will happen. This is a very popular area of interest for general public, with millions using it. Such service should be run by government. And everyone laughs. But that’s the idea behind government and society. Not just collect taxes and provide basic services. the ineffective and outdated democratic system that needs update for modern times.

Re: When we get Komooted

#89
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is that insane? A job this week is no guarantee, legally or practically, of a job next week. To assume otherwise is foolish and naive. That’s simply not how employment works.

> A job this week is no guarantee, legally or practically, of a job next week. It is in Europe - one or three months are the standard notice periods I believe?

In some European countries protection is even stronger. If a position becomes unnecessary, you first have to try to find another position within a company that requires a comparable level of education. You can only fire people for grave negligence or for violating rules, or lay them off e.g. if your company has to in order to survive.

From what I have heard (but IANAL), Germany has weaker protections (which is relevant here). Also, typically people sign away their rights, trading them for a good payout + a good recommendation for a next job.

Re: When we get Komooted

#90
post #76
post #35

> Komoot, to them, was more than a job; it was a mission and purpose. Many had accepted below-average salaries and uprooted their lives to commit to the outdoor lifestyle and the dream job. Suddenly, they were left scrambling for new work and visa sponsors with just a few months’ pay as severance. The six bosses, meanwhile, pocketed an estimated 20 to 30 million euros each. That’s why, and call me unethical, I never…

> For dreams and craft, I have my side projects. In very infrequent cases can you achieve any noticeable (for society) results without being part of a large org.

That depends on what you consider noticeable. A lot of things are noticeable (and noticed) on the local level. The folks that organise reading sessions with the kids a my sons school. The people managing the local hockey club. People doing local education in IT. Organizing the neighborhood meetup. The people that do hack and tell. Blog about what they’re doing by as fun projects.

They may not be known beyond their local communities, but they have impact on society. Most of them are contend with that. If you’re looking to change the world, then that’s likely not good enough, but then again, if you’re looking to do that it’s unlikely that you will achieve that as a rank and file employee in a corporation.

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