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About a month ago, Tom Anderson (Myspace Tom, if you prefer) wrote a post on his new favorite social network, Google +, offering a few bits of advice for Twitter. Although many of us enjoy good Twittering now and again, Anderson pointed out that there are several simple features, Twitter could consider if it wants to improve the overall quality of its users. The thrust that could improve social experience Twitter were company to add a "discussion" or chat feature that will, in Tom's conception, to give the Viewer provides a space for you to leave a comment and discuss easy tweets without flooding followers streams from one part of the conversation continues.
Well Tom may simply be interested in a new startup launching today, is called the joint. Okay, well this is not an exact copy of Myspace founder idea, but it attacked the same point the pain of long-discussed Twitter users: in desperate need of better platform to facilitate real-time, private and longer form conversations. Of course there are some differences among users over whether Twitter should be one offering this function, or whether it should remain simple, just like this.
Says joint founder Ethan Gahng (and I tend to agree) that Twitter is better served by staying simple in terms of its user interface and instead allows third party startups and developers to add additional social and chat features from the outside world. (And Twitter in the past few years seems to be largely in line with this philosophy).
To achieve this objective, the joint essentially turns any Twitter hashtag in IRC (Internet Relay channel)-as a chat room, which is integrated with real-time hashtag stream from Twitter. Check it out below. This combo box allows users to participate in a number of different social interactions, including front and center real-time Group chat, which fills with live hashtag channel in the right sidebar.
Users can pull hashtags directly in group chat, or invite people who posted tweets in group chat, right from the chat, or just go and enjoy the synchronous chat, watching as Twitter stream fills. Compared with Hootsuite, Tweetdeck and other third-party applications that let you track hashtags, being able to watch someone Tweet outside and bring them in and chat away this thin borders and differences by joint, what really makes a big difference.
If you're trying to engage in conversation with someone on Twitter, that goes beyond a few @ replies, "you either have to DM or the conversation of other countries. Sharing allows users to easily join group chat, and also to discussing major or popular hashtags. For example, in recent times "# irene" became used as hashtag as Hurricane Irene ready to hit the East Coast. The joint could be a very useful resource for those who want to easily gather and discuss the current situation, such as hurricanes, protests or events, live, from anywhere.
Another cool joint in the aspect that it should function as an informal conversation environment for Twitter users means that if I have a conversation with someone and a third person joins a chat room, they will not be able to see the current conversation. It says, is intended to ensure joint Gahng group chat more interaction in the real world.
That joint in cases of alleged use Gahng said that it is easy to connect to other people on Twitter, but it's hard to really get to know them, so that through the joint, you can meet someone on Twitter that you want to play Starcraft, with many of your followers do not wish to join in on the fun. Which is why open standards Warrior Chris Messina offers a hashtag in the first place, but certainly not so many people regularly follow hashtags in their day-to-day use of Twitter. Joint looks at this change, making it easy to search for different hashtags, discuss and follow them synchronously in real-time. As an example, check out Starcraft feed here.
Not to speak of the fact that, because tweeting with hashtags means that your tweets get archive and live eternally in search engines, etc., many people feel uncomfortable about the availability of public conversations (more private matters, especially) on Twitter. We've all had to delete a Tweet or two and often too late. Giving Twitter users who added benefit social flexibility, joint hopes to give yourself a leg up on other third-party Twitter apps.
And finally beyond just the ability to monitor the hashtag groups, joint also informs the user when a new user in chat room, offers search descriptions and enables users to view main catalogue or even start their own hashtag channel.
Joint solves major pain point, often faced by Twitter users and from my experience at chats and poking around the site, the user interface is simple and chat is a fast and easy to use. A multidisciplinary team of three people working on this since January and run the initialization at the moment, but if the platform can be scaled and continue to work in real-time without glitches, this seems like something that can definitely legs.
Joint and his team is not affiliated with Twitter in any way, but I wouldn't be surprised if social networks comes knocking at the door at some point down the road.
For more check the joint houses here.
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