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> the availability of documentation doesn't mean it can't be intuitive Sure, I'm not saying that either, and Matrix has been improving a lot since I first trie
by spurgu 6y ago
> the availability of documentation doesn't mean it can't be intuitive
Sure, I'm not saying that either, and Matrix has been improving a lot since I first tried it maybe 2 years ago. But there's still a long way to go. I wasn't as focused on onboarding as I was on criticizing Element's UI/UX in general.
> And we definitely don't need phone numbers and SMS verification for usability: a username will do just fine
Phone number is just the easiest thing to do. No one is confused by the process and you immediately have access to all of your contacts, while with a username you somehow need to get all the usernames of all of your friends. Inviting new users to various channels kind of works, but it's not as personal as your own contact list.
Mind you I'm not saying it's the best option. Personally I'd rather register with a username, not only because I currently have three different phone numbers in use.
> we don't have to spend 1.5 million USD from donations just on SMS codes in 2018 alone (source: tax filing)
Signal was paying that much? That's crazy.
- lucb1e 6y agoAgreed on all points. > Signal was paying that much? That's crazy. Yeah unfortunately they were. Income for that year (only year they filed so far) is 600k versus about 5M expenses, the largest single expense being sms verifications. Zero income from donations, perhaps they still ran that through the freedom of press foundation or what was it again that accepted donations on their behalf until they had the Foundation status? Either way, I wouldn't want to see the january 2021 bill.
- spurgu 6y ago> Either way, I wouldn't want to see the january 2021 bill. Haha definitely not. I would assume/hope that if Signal now starts going mainstream the donations will increase. I had donated sporadically in the past (have been using Signal since 2015) and now (since a couple of days ago) I'm doing monthly recurring donations. I'll recommend my friends to do the same, as I have been with Wikipedia and Archive.org.