4 ms·

OK - I think we can all agree this is shit. What are the (serious) alternatives?

creshal 10y ago
Something that's not VC funded or otherwise depending on external money sources, or you'll have the same problem again a few years down the road when $Alternative is asked to turn a profit.
- 2T1Qka0rEiPr 10y ago
  OK, but a messenger app's usefulness is almost entirely (as with social networks) governed by its network effects. You can have the best tool in the world, but if no one uses it, it's worthless. It's a real shame that WA decided to drop their paid model (though at the price they were asking for it's clear to see why they'd favour this model). Do we just have to face up to the reality with social networks and communication apps such as these, which is that the power comes from most people using it, and when most people don't care (s/care/understand/) about privacy, the "freemium" (we can haz data) model is the most obvious to profit from and so the one to which all the successful businesses are drawn to?
  - creshal 10y ago
    > OK, but a messenger app's usefulness is almost entirely (as with social networks) governed by its network effects. You can have the best tool in the world, but if no one uses it, it's worthless. That's what we have been struggling with since the mid-90s, yes. IRC will always exists, but past that?
    - 2T1Qka0rEiPr 10y ago
      +1 for the suggestion of IRC being the best messaging app!
      - creshal 10y ago
        It hasn't the best user experience, but it's the only one I've been able to consistently use for the past 15 or so years. (Yes, yes, I was late to the party, I know.)
newscracker 10y ago
If you can convince even a few people in your network to try something different, I'd suggest trying Telegram, Wire and Signal. Then decide which works best for you to start pestering others too switch.
- Grangar 10y ago
  But the problem with that is that users will flock back to whatsapp, because everyone else is. We need a coherent movement to a single platform that doesn't fracture everyone across platforms. We've seen that happen when Whatsapp got acquired...

Something that's not VC funded or otherwise depending on external money sources, or you'll have the same problem again a few years down the road when $Alternative is asked to turn a profit.

2T1Qka0rEiPr 10y ago
OK, but a messenger app's usefulness is almost entirely (as with social networks) governed by its network effects. You can have the best tool in the world, but if no one uses it, it's worthless. It's a real shame that WA decided to drop their paid model (though at the price they were asking for it's clear to see why they'd favour this model). Do we just have to face up to the reality with social networks and communication apps such as these, which is that the power comes from most people using it, and when most people don't care (s/care/understand/) about privacy, the "freemium" (we can haz data) model is the most obvious to profit from and so the one to which all the successful businesses are drawn to?
- creshal 10y ago
  > OK, but a messenger app's usefulness is almost entirely (as with social networks) governed by its network effects. You can have the best tool in the world, but if no one uses it, it's worthless. That's what we have been struggling with since the mid-90s, yes. IRC will always exists, but past that?
  - 2T1Qka0rEiPr 10y ago
    +1 for the suggestion of IRC being the best messaging app!
    - creshal 10y ago
      It hasn't the best user experience, but it's the only one I've been able to consistently use for the past 15 or so years. (Yes, yes, I was late to the party, I know.)

newscracker 10y ago

If you can convince even a few people in your network to try something different, I'd suggest trying Telegram, Wire and Signal. Then decide which works best for you to start pestering others too switch.

Grangar 10y ago
But the problem with that is that users will flock back to whatsapp, because everyone else is. We need a coherent movement to a single platform that doesn't fracture everyone across platforms. We've seen that happen when Whatsapp got acquired...