4 ms·
Bots are broken as a platform. No advertising, no payments system, developers have to pay for hosting, there's no discovery mechanism because the messengers don
by dreamdu5t 10y ago
Bots are broken as a platform. No advertising, no payments system, developers have to pay for hosting, there's no discovery mechanism because the messengers don't have bot stores... Why would developers be interested?
- dudemonkey 10y agoReplace "bots" with "internet" and this could have been a quote lifted from a circa-1995 Microsoft strategy meeting
- dexwiz 10y agoBots are closer to a CLI than a GUI, that is the core issue with discovery.
- cmdrfred 10y agoI don't understand the discovery comment. I don't discover Bob the copier salesman. I decide I need a copier, search for copier retailers and then give Bob a call. Won't bots work the same way?
- tyingq 10y agoDepends on which vision wins out. The phone handset vendors certainly have a leg up on being the "discovery" part, deciding which copier retailers you get exposed to.
- dexwiz 10y agoYou don't have to discover how to call Bob, which is analogous to finding the bot. But you may need to discover what jargon to use with Bob to make sure you get what you want.
- est 10y agoWhat stops you from building a bot that supports advertising, payments system, "server-less" mode? Also bot functions can be federated and forwarded quite easily.
- dreamdu5t 10y agoIt's possible to buy iPhone apps by sending a check in the mail... missing my point entirely.
- carlesfe 10y agoI'm not trying to convince you otherwise, but I honestly believe you're missing the point. Bots will triumph not because of technical reasons, but rather because they are what people want. If you let me a self-plug, here's a detailed explanation I wrote a few days ago, I'd love to know what you think after reading it: http://cfenollosa.com/blog/bots-lack-metaphors-and-that-is-their-biggest-asset.html http://cfenollosa.com/blog/bots-lack-metaphors-and-that-is-t...
- rmc 10y agoPretty sure you'll be able to insert adverts into what a bot says.
- draugadrotten 10y agoWhy do you say you'll be able to insert adverts into what a bot says? We can talk about Acme Corporation's great products if you like.
- Houshalter 10y agoAs I understand it, bots have been really successful in Asia. The messaging platforms did add payment ability for the bots, and it doesn't require users to install a new app. There also are bot stores on some messaging apps. I know Skype just added one. And facebook and telegram were giving out grants for users to develop interesting bots on their platforms.
- TeMPOraL 10y ago> Why would developers be interested? For exactly the reasons you mentioned. Now what would business folks be interested? That's another question.