Twitter and 3rd Party Apps

From Mitchell Clark, the Verge:

Elon Musk just decided to throw all of that away. Twitter has abruptly cut itself off from that stream of ideas — the stream that produced its apps, some of its most popular features, and much of its core identity. Even if he backtracks, why would developers spend their best ideas on a company that’s burned them so badly?

Twitter was always unique in that they are one of the only social media platforms to allow 3rd-party clients to essentially re-create the entire platform’s experience. Looking back at how much those early apps made the experience what it is today is really worth celebrating, even if we knew it wouldn’t last forever. Given the fact that they never were able to push ads into those timelines, it’s no wonder that eventually they would shut Twitterrific, Tweetbot and others down.

How AIM, the original killer app, reshaped the internet

Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan for Fast Company:

Though its official sunsetting in 2017 inspired many nostalgic blogs about the chat service, it’s safe to say AIM’s legacy is still very much alive in the apps we use every day—and in the contours of the internet at large.

A great recap of the rise and fall of AIM, AOL’s instant messaging service that changed the web forever.

I have so many great memories of AIM. It came up during time time in high school and into college so this was the way my friends and I stayed in touch pre-social networks. There are still some ongoing disputes about who holds the record for longest AIM uptime…