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Despite it being quite the first world problem its a problem I have. I've been wanting to use a service like this but here is my question. Whats with the whol

by wh-uws 11y ago

Despite it being quite the first world problem its a problem I have. I've been wanting to use a service like this but here is my question. Whats with the whole text message as a ui craze? I don't get it / like it. Especially for this app. The explanation I usually hear is its good for people who dont have smartphones or at least good ones. But I think the overlap of the set of people with this problem and no smartphone are vanishingly small. This is the kind of service I want an app/ website that I can analyze the data with and push notifications work for the text message case.

Aleman360 11y ago
> Whats with the whole text message as a ui craze? It's a next gen command line.
colmvp 11y ago
Lower friction as you are creating a process that works on multiple OS' without needing to download an app Also, everyone largely keeps text message notifications on so it's easier to maintain communication compared to relying on the user enabling app notifications
- caseysoftware 11y ago
  You nailed it. It gives you 100% market penetration with one system, one UI, and then you can focus on the backend processing and workflows. It also doesn't require data or the like. If you throw in some phone number -> country processing, you can even make some best-guess localization/internationalization with pretty minimal effort. It's a simple but powerful approach. ~ Former Twilio evangelist, so biased :)
  - ufo 11y ago
    I'm curious about how you can deal with security/authentication in these SMS APIs. In theory, sending spoofed SMS messages to Trim would let you cancel someone else's sbuscriptions.
    - caseysoftware 11y ago
      There are a few tactics but first consider the odds: - First, the target would have to be a subscriber to Trim so that's a small group. - Then you'd have to cancel something they actually have so that further shrinks the group. (Netflix would be a likely candidate.) - But then Trim could thwart most attacks with a simple "Are you sure? If so, respond with " + rand(0, 100) If Trim used a simple Y/N the attacker could spoof that easily. Spoofing a message from another number is relatively easy. Catching Trim's responses is more effort and most attackers aren't going to go to that level of effort.
josephjrobison 11y ago
I think the reason text is increasing as a UI craze is the same reason email is making a resurgence. Lots of companies focused on social media and apps to connect with their users the last decade as those channels had unlimited promise. But we've seen Facebook control the connection with your audience on that platform and start forcing you to buy ads if you want to communicate to a large percentage of them. In the same way, apps have matured a bit and those who might have made apps to get the instant notifications have seen users and or Apple control the push notifications more. Since texting is usually reserved for people we know, having notifications via text means you'll read almost 100% of them, rather than turning them off. Focusing on text is a way of cutting through the noise.

by wh-uws 11y ago

Aleman360 11y ago

> Whats with the whole text message as a ui craze? It's a next gen command line.

colmvp 11y ago

Lower friction as you are creating a process that works on multiple OS' without needing to download an app Also, everyone largely keeps text message notifications on so it's easier to maintain communication compared to relying on the user enabling app notifications

caseysoftware 11y ago
You nailed it. It gives you 100% market penetration with one system, one UI, and then you can focus on the backend processing and workflows. It also doesn't require data or the like. If you throw in some phone number -> country processing, you can even make some best-guess localization/internationalization with pretty minimal effort. It's a simple but powerful approach. ~ Former Twilio evangelist, so biased :)
- ufo 11y ago
  I'm curious about how you can deal with security/authentication in these SMS APIs. In theory, sending spoofed SMS messages to Trim would let you cancel someone else's sbuscriptions.
  - caseysoftware 11y ago
    There are a few tactics but first consider the odds: - First, the target would have to be a subscriber to Trim so that's a small group. - Then you'd have to cancel something they actually have so that further shrinks the group. (Netflix would be a likely candidate.) - But then Trim could thwart most attacks with a simple "Are you sure? If so, respond with " + rand(0, 100) If Trim used a simple Y/N the attacker could spoof that easily. Spoofing a message from another number is relatively easy. Catching Trim's responses is more effort and most attackers aren't going to go to that level of effort.

josephjrobison 11y ago

I think the reason text is increasing as a UI craze is the same reason email is making a resurgence. Lots of companies focused on social media and apps to connect with their users the last decade as those channels had unlimited promise. But we've seen Facebook control the connection with your audience on that platform and start forcing you to buy ads if you want to communicate to a large percentage of them. In the same way, apps have matured a bit and those who might have made apps to get the instant notifications have seen users and or Apple control the push notifications more. Since texting is usually reserved for people we know, having notifications via text means you'll read almost 100% of them, rather than turning them off. Focusing on text is a way of cutting through the noise.