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Slackifying e-mail sounds like a nightmare to me. Email is about perfect for what it was designed. I check it when I want to check it, few Times a day. We (as h

by tikej 6y ago

Slackifying e-mail sounds like a nightmare to me. Email is about perfect for what it was designed. I check it when I want to check it, few Times a day. We (as humanity) really give up more and more of our most precious resources: attention and deep focus.

sova 6y ago
Deep focus is very precious and really requires immersing oneself in the topic - oftentimes far away from a screen or blinky lights. Rich Hickey has a great quote about hammocks: when you're in one, nobody can tell you're not sleeping.
rainyMammoth 6y ago
Exactly this. I said this before, but I hate the direction the workspace is going. Interruption driven work seems to become the new normal.
gazelleeatslion 6y ago
To say “slackifying” is offensive to Front. I HATE Slack. For me, it turns into a gross “pinging you” and overall is insanely annoying to be in channels and check back on information. Or, finding files or using search is Hell. Not to mention their insanely painful login experience. I am looking forward to its death at CRM. Front is the real deal. Hands down the greatest productivity software I’ve used in YEARS. If you haven’t used it check it out. If you collaborate with a small team it will change your life. It’s nothing like Slack... Edit: To clarify some more. Slack and Front are for different mindsets. Front is best when you are a project/assignment driven person. Slack is best when you are just a drone on a project/channel (if that makes sense...). Slack also is great when the conversation is heavily one sided. Boss bugging employee. Or, someone who doesn’t know what they are doing has lots of questions for someone who knows what they are doing during a task. Which is fine and has a use. Thinking about it, CRM should have bought Front instead. Their CRM/people integration is getting incredibly good especially as a support desk suite beyond “email”. The Slack sale is one of the greatest heist I’ve ever seen. Looking forward to Front eating Outlook and Team’s lunch next
- iab 6y ago
  Came into this thread with a very negative mindset - but am persuaded by your comment, will check it out
  - peteretep 6y ago
    Slack is gussied up IRC and a productivity drain. Front is awesome and transformed my business.
- turtlebits 6y ago
  I don't get this. I looked at the Front landing page and it mentions communications with customers. Not a tool I have a use for. I'm not a big fan of Slack, but it is the best of the chat apps, and I do see a need for team chat for collaboration.
- RHSeeger 6y ago
  > Slack is best when you are just a drone on a project/channel (if that makes sense...). > Slack also is great when the conversation is heavily one sided. Honestly, that seems extremely unfair to me. It feels like you're using it wrong. In my experience, Slack is for conversations. The groups I'm in use it for tossing out random thoughts/questions... and people participate as they choose. If you're using in a way where people are constantly pinging you demanding your attention, then you should change that. That's no different than being in a large office and everyone else feeling free to just walk over to you and tap you on the shoulder every time they want something. If _that_ was happening, it would be something you should fix, too.
  - gazelleeatslion 6y ago
    Eh, I still disagree. Chat is definitely needed and important but nothing ever gets lost really by “tossing out random questions” in Front. I would rethink twice how you are communicating in the work place. I find that messy and then forces people to juggle back “oh, yeah what did you Slack me about this the other day”. The most annoying people on Slack don’t realize they are annoying. Either way to each it’s own. Check out Front and stay open minded to how you communicate in work place
cyral 6y ago
I mean you still use Front as email... except you can invite users to threads and assign them to other people and it makes doing anything with a team so much more manageable instead of forwarding things around and being unsure if they have already been handled.
- chrisfrantz 6y ago
  Isn’t that just forwarding and cc’ing? I’ll often have long threads where multiple chains will be going within it with different parties brought in. Not to sound like the Dropbox comment from back in the day, but cc’ing and forwarding are just the basics when it comes to email.
  - cyral 6y ago
    Yes but it works way better than forwarding and cc’ing. It’s like how they should have been.
  - wyclif 6y ago
    Jeff Bezos probably loves Front for this reason (anyone who has ever received an infamous "?" cc: email from Bezos will understand what I mean by this comment).
bassman9000 6y ago
I've had this conversation multiple times with my colleagues. One of them always argue that WhateverIsTheNewThingThatsGoingToReplaceEmail will replace email, this time for real; I argue that 10 years from now, email will still be a thing, and all these services will likely be not. It's been at least 4-5 years of the first time we had it. I never update the "10" part.
- throwaway201103 6y ago
  I was using email in the 1980s and still am (still plain text even) so I'd say you are right!
an_opabinia 6y ago
The real reason email has problems is that it intermingles messages from real human beings and ones from computers, in a way that Facebook messenger and Twitter to a lesser extent do not. It’s a little puzzling to me why Gmail does not simply separate machine generated from human originated email.
- Throwaway1771 6y ago
  This is what their Promotions tab intends to do.
  - freeone3000 6y ago
    I've had fewer and fewer emails end up in Promotions. Apparently the initial settings were far too effective, so they had to be turned down in order for promotional emails to actually see eyeballs.
martinesko36 6y ago
Shameless plug: If anyone is interested in an email client that helps you build healthy email habits, I work on Emailio (https://emailio.com https://emailio.com), a YC company that helps you do just that. HN users who sign up can email me martin@emailio.com for free lifetime beta access.

by tikej 6y ago

sova 6y ago

Deep focus is very precious and really requires immersing oneself in the topic - oftentimes far away from a screen or blinky lights. Rich Hickey has a great quote about hammocks: when you're in one, nobody can tell you're not sleeping.

rainyMammoth 6y ago

Exactly this. I said this before, but I hate the direction the workspace is going. Interruption driven work seems to become the new normal.

gazelleeatslion 6y ago

To say “slackifying” is offensive to Front. I HATE Slack. For me, it turns into a gross “pinging you” and overall is insanely annoying to be in channels and check back on information. Or, finding files or using search is Hell. Not to mention their insanely painful login experience. I am looking forward to its death at CRM. Front is the real deal. Hands down the greatest productivity software I’ve used in YEARS. If you haven’t used it check it out. If you collaborate with a small team it will change your life. It’s nothing like Slack... Edit: To clarify some more. Slack and Front are for different mindsets. Front is best when you are a project/assignment driven person. Slack is best when you are just a drone on a project/channel (if that makes sense...). Slack also is great when the conversation is heavily one sided. Boss bugging employee. Or, someone who doesn’t know what they are doing has lots of questions for someone who knows what they are doing during a task. Which is fine and has a use. Thinking about it, CRM should have bought Front instead. Their CRM/people integration is getting incredibly good especially as a support desk suite beyond “email”. The Slack sale is one of the greatest heist I’ve ever seen. Looking forward to Front eating Outlook and Team’s lunch next

iab 6y ago
Came into this thread with a very negative mindset - but am persuaded by your comment, will check it out
- peteretep 6y ago
  Slack is gussied up IRC and a productivity drain. Front is awesome and transformed my business.
turtlebits 6y ago
I don't get this. I looked at the Front landing page and it mentions communications with customers. Not a tool I have a use for. I'm not a big fan of Slack, but it is the best of the chat apps, and I do see a need for team chat for collaboration.
RHSeeger 6y ago
> Slack is best when you are just a drone on a project/channel (if that makes sense...). > Slack also is great when the conversation is heavily one sided. Honestly, that seems extremely unfair to me. It feels like you're using it wrong. In my experience, Slack is for conversations. The groups I'm in use it for tossing out random thoughts/questions... and people participate as they choose. If you're using in a way where people are constantly pinging you demanding your attention, then you should change that. That's no different than being in a large office and everyone else feeling free to just walk over to you and tap you on the shoulder every time they want something. If _that_ was happening, it would be something you should fix, too.
- gazelleeatslion 6y ago
  Eh, I still disagree. Chat is definitely needed and important but nothing ever gets lost really by “tossing out random questions” in Front. I would rethink twice how you are communicating in the work place. I find that messy and then forces people to juggle back “oh, yeah what did you Slack me about this the other day”. The most annoying people on Slack don’t realize they are annoying. Either way to each it’s own. Check out Front and stay open minded to how you communicate in work place

cyral 6y ago

I mean you still use Front as email... except you can invite users to threads and assign them to other people and it makes doing anything with a team so much more manageable instead of forwarding things around and being unsure if they have already been handled.

chrisfrantz 6y ago
Isn’t that just forwarding and cc’ing? I’ll often have long threads where multiple chains will be going within it with different parties brought in. Not to sound like the Dropbox comment from back in the day, but cc’ing and forwarding are just the basics when it comes to email.
- cyral 6y ago
  Yes but it works way better than forwarding and cc’ing. It’s like how they should have been.
- wyclif 6y ago
  Jeff Bezos probably loves Front for this reason (anyone who has ever received an infamous "?" cc: email from Bezos will understand what I mean by this comment).

bassman9000 6y ago

I've had this conversation multiple times with my colleagues. One of them always argue that WhateverIsTheNewThingThatsGoingToReplaceEmail will replace email, this time for real; I argue that 10 years from now, email will still be a thing, and all these services will likely be not. It's been at least 4-5 years of the first time we had it. I never update the "10" part.

throwaway201103 6y ago
I was using email in the 1980s and still am (still plain text even) so I'd say you are right!

an_opabinia 6y ago

The real reason email has problems is that it intermingles messages from real human beings and ones from computers, in a way that Facebook messenger and Twitter to a lesser extent do not. It’s a little puzzling to me why Gmail does not simply separate machine generated from human originated email.

Throwaway1771 6y ago
This is what their Promotions tab intends to do.
- freeone3000 6y ago
  I've had fewer and fewer emails end up in Promotions. Apparently the initial settings were far too effective, so they had to be turned down in order for promotional emails to actually see eyeballs.

martinesko36 6y ago

Shameless plug: If anyone is interested in an email client that helps you build healthy email habits, I work on Emailio (https://emailio.com https://emailio.com), a YC company that helps you do just that. HN users who sign up can email me martin@emailio.com for free lifetime beta access.