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How Discord Went Mainstream

theatlantic.com

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Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#3

Post by s_y_n_t_a_x »

gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

People were tired of getting DDoS'ed so they switched away from Skype/Teamspeak.

The nice UX makes it easy for everyone to use, and the community aspect is appealing.

IRC isn't very easy to use for the common person.

Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#4

Post by panic »

gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

Here are a few things that make Discord nicer than IRC for ordinary (non-voice) chat:

1. You can start a new server right in the client by clicking a button.

2. Logs are saved server-side and synced across all your clients (phone, PC, etc).

3. You can upload images and videos to be hosted by Discord's servers. Media and links appear inline in the chat log.

4. No strange rituals involving NickServ or ChanServ.

5. Mobile notifications.

Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#5

Post by tomupom »

s_y_n_t_a_x wrote: post #3
gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

People were tired of getting DDoS'ed so they switched away from Skype/Teamspeak. The nice UX makes it easy for everyone to use, and the community aspect is appealing. IRC isn't very easy to use for the common person.

I agree, there is far less of a learning curve involved with Discord and I believe this helped them win over a younger demographic of users.

I also feel like they capitalised on something specific that gamers wanted (chat and voice calls with low latency). Skype call quality is very much hit or miss, and while Mumble is great not everyone has the expertise in setting up a server.

Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#6

Post by bathory »

panic wrote: post #4
gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

Here are a few things that make Discord nicer than IRC for ordinary (non-voice) chat: 1. You can start a new server right in the client by clicking a button. 2. Logs are saved server-side and synced across all your clients (phone, PC, etc). 3. You can upload images and videos to be hosted by Discord's servers. Media and links appear inline in the chat log. 4. No strange rituals involving NickServ or ChanServ. 5. Mobi…

Regarding 4.), only once which is your account creation which is valid across all discord servers

Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#7

Post by fvjft »

gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

Apart from the (more than obvious) technical feats, they've raised a lot of money and can afford to offer all of their services, some of them a bit expensive, for free. If they can't find a way to monetise, though, they'll be in trouble.

Had TeamSpeak or Mumble been able to offer hosted services for free, maybe Discord wouldn't have existed.

Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#8

Post by lmedinas »

panic wrote: post #4
gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

Here are a few things that make Discord nicer than IRC for ordinary (non-voice) chat: 1. You can start a new server right in the client by clicking a button. 2. Logs are saved server-side and synced across all your clients (phone, PC, etc). 3. You can upload images and videos to be hosted by Discord's servers. Media and links appear inline in the chat log. 4. No strange rituals involving NickServ or ChanServ. 5. Mobi…

In addition to this you have integration with other gaming platforms like: Battle.net, Steam, Twitch and for example join a game directly from Discord.

Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#9

Post by loktarogar »

gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

voice is one of the killer features - simple, instant voice chat, just give someone a link and they're pretty much in. no mucking about with settings. in gamer circles that's huge, and the IRC functionality made it great for game guilds or group of friends for async messaging.

compare discord to say teamspeak or ventrilo before it, where you had to both set up the software and configure it, as well as rent or own a server for people to connect to, discord was a godsend

and miles better than skype

Re: How Discord Went Mainstream

#10

Post by hedgew »

panic wrote: post #4
gaspoweredcat wrote: post #2

maybe im just getting old but i cant really understand the runaway success of discord, it seems awfully similar to IRC to me

Here are a few things that make Discord nicer than IRC for ordinary (non-voice) chat: 1. You can start a new server right in the client by clicking a button. 2. Logs are saved server-side and synced across all your clients (phone, PC, etc). 3. You can upload images and videos to be hosted by Discord's servers. Media and links appear inline in the chat log. 4. No strange rituals involving NickServ or ChanServ. 5. Mobi…

6. You don't need to publicize your IP address by default.
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