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I hate web because it provides a user interface instead of a programming interface. If I don't like the existing user interface to a standardized machine-reada

I hate web because it provides a user interface instead of a programming interface. If I don't like the existing user interface to a standardized machine-readable protocol/format, I can write my own user interface for my own needs, as can anyone else, which has two big advantages: People with different needs can have user interfaces that match their respective needs, even while working on the same project, and that leads to easier innovation (when people share their respective solutions). Now, github currently provides the low-barrier solution that seems to be good enough for many people, which is why the development of tools for email-based workflows is stagnating, instead building more lock-in for github, and preventing any serious improvement in workflows. So, your hate for email is for practical reasons, but those practical reasons are not inherent properties of email, but rather the result of github trying to capture the market for later exploitation, and you are happy to help them for the momentary convenience, while probably not realizing how much potential convenience you are missing out on as a side effect.

notriddle 10y ago
> I hate web because it provides a user interface instead of a programming interface. https://api.github.com/ https://api.github.com/
- zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 10y ago
  Which is mostly missing the point. First of all, github is not the web, and much of the web does not have an API (and I don't have a clue how good the github API is). But more importantly, even if they have an API: Is there any legally binding committment on their part that that API will be a reliable basis for me to build on for the next 20 years or so, assuming they still exist then? Won't they change it as it suits their needs, in particular their business needs? A "programming interface" that I can't rely on in the long run is still kindof a user interface, as I have to bother with it whenever it changes. It's a real programming interface only if I can build an abstraction on top of it and essentially forget the layers beneath.

notriddle 10y ago

> I hate web because it provides a user interface instead of a programming interface. https://api.github.com/ https://api.github.com/

zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 10y ago
Which is mostly missing the point. First of all, github is not the web, and much of the web does not have an API (and I don't have a clue how good the github API is). But more importantly, even if they have an API: Is there any legally binding committment on their part that that API will be a reliable basis for me to build on for the next 20 years or so, assuming they still exist then? Won't they change it as it suits their needs, in particular their business needs? A "programming interface" that I can't rely on in the long run is still kindof a user interface, as I have to bother with it whenever it changes. It's a real programming interface only if I can build an abstraction on top of it and essentially forget the layers beneath.