4 ms·

Thank you! > but then email bridging might just turn it into another email client. Exactly. My first attempt at Pony was an email service. People tried it, bu

Thank you! > but then email bridging might just turn it into another email client. Exactly. My first attempt at Pony was an email service. People tried it, but there was a lot of confusion about the asymmetry of some people being on an instant platform and some people being on Pony. Email comes with its own norms and expectations, and many people viewed Pony as "rebellious" or "anti-social," which was the last thing I was going for. I am trying to create something very pro-social. I decided that my strategy for overcoming network effects would be to build a unique, excellent product that people loved enough to get other people to use it. That's the only way, really, I think.

bytesandbots 5y ago
I am sure you have thought about this, but following is what I imagine it can be: I can give username@ponymessenger.com email to new people I start communication with, like maybe part of a professional profile. An email to this address will receive an auto-reply. It will explain that message will be delivered later, and not instantly. Since this is a different email domain and opens a new line of communication, it will not carry an expectation of instant emails. It will be even better if this auto-reply contains a link to a webpage. On that page, they can modify their message or rephrase until the delivery time (with a countdown ideally). Maybe the domain name could be something that implies the delayed delivery part to make it even clearer. From the recipient/reader side, this has to be a sacred space, away from the continuous traffic of other emails. It is not possible to turn all of our emails into delayed correspondence. Hence, this can not work as just an email client. It should help grow the network without becoming an email client. Pony is just the messenger service needed in the ever-connected world. I had dreamed of using this kind of messenger. Thanks for building it. I hope this grows into something big.

bytesandbots 5y ago

I am sure you have thought about this, but following is what I imagine it can be: I can give username@ponymessenger.com email to new people I start communication with, like maybe part of a professional profile. An email to this address will receive an auto-reply. It will explain that message will be delivered later, and not instantly. Since this is a different email domain and opens a new line of communication, it will not carry an expectation of instant emails. It will be even better if this auto-reply contains a link to a webpage. On that page, they can modify their message or rephrase until the delivery time (with a countdown ideally). Maybe the domain name could be something that implies the delayed delivery part to make it even clearer. From the recipient/reader side, this has to be a sacred space, away from the continuous traffic of other emails. It is not possible to turn all of our emails into delayed correspondence. Hence, this can not work as just an email client. It should help grow the network without becoming an email client. Pony is just the messenger service needed in the ever-connected world. I had dreamed of using this kind of messenger. Thanks for building it. I hope this grows into something big.