VoteBlueforDemocracyNov 26, 2022
CrimethInc. Ex-Workers

Twitter was not invented by hotshot entrepreneurs. It was modeled on TXTmob, a tool activists designed for the protests at the 2004 Republican National Convention.

Real innovation comes from participatory experimentation, not profiteering.

Billionaires ruin everything they touch.

https://crimethinc.com/TwitterBought

The Billionaire and the Anarchists

Tracing Twitter from its grassroots origins as a protest tool to Musk's acquisition—a history of the capitalist takeover of the internet in microcosm.

CrimethInc.
Nov 11, 2022 at 6:20pmWeb
Show thread🇳𝗮ꜟ𝖼𝘩Nov 11, 2022
@CrimethInc Hence the original 140 character limit.
Show threadKelvin VoskuijlNov 11, 2022
@Naich @CrimethInc twitter originally also was a sms service.
Show threadXabier RamírezNov 12, 2022
@CrimethInc Pásalo
Show threadJoel Harq Al-AdaNov 12, 2022
@CrimethInc awesome info!
Show threadSanniceNov 12, 2022
@CrimethInc correctly! nothing is more fun once millionaires own it: football, markets, democracy, social media - not fun anymore
Show threadSteve GarfieldNov 12, 2022

@CrimethInc

TXTmob and Twitter
https://medium.com/@tadhirsch/txtmob-and-twitter-a-reply-to-nick-bilton-eedbde2abbcd
“Twitter’s roots can be traced back to the 2004 Republican National Convention, when protesters relied on custom-built software to coordinate actions, report on police movements, and share their whereabouts.”

TXTmob and Twitter: A Reply to Nick Bilton - Tad Hirsch - Medium

A brief history of activist communication platform TXTmob's influence on the design of Twitter, and some reflections on technology creation myths.

Medium
Show threadParkimedesNov 15, 2022
@SteveGarfield @CrimethInc this is such a cool piece of history. I totally missed that, although i do remember reading about the protests. More recently there was a similar app called fireChat. I wonder if they’re still around. It was a Bluetooth connection meant to relay messages through crowds, such as protests when cell service might be blocked or to avoid data tracking. Pretty cool idea. But you needed critical mass of users in proximity.
Show threadAlex ChaffeeNov 29, 2022

@SteveGarfield @CrimethInc

Sounds like an accurate oral history to me, but just to make sure... I happen to have Marshall McLuhan right here 😉
say, @blaine -- would you mind confirming/correcting this Twitter origin story?

Show threadblaineNov 29, 2022
@alexch @SteveGarfield @CrimethInc 😂 yup! Tad's write-up is spot-on, I'd say.
Show threadfemavenNov 16, 2022
@CrimethInc didn’t they also make a spray painting bot too?
Show threadLeviathan (Odette)Nov 26, 2022
@CrimethInc this is easily one of the most brilliant things I've ever seen. Would love to get phone notifications about where the cops were and how to avoid them.
Show threadKaroline Nov 29, 2022
@CrimethInc I remember texting the bird site in the early days because I didn't have a smart phone. It's what I did when I was not at a computer but still wanted to update the world on what I was up to. Stone Age!
Show threadLambert HellerNov 29, 2022
@CrimethInc The myth of the entrepreneurial genius persists, although we see the same pattern, over and over. We have a huge digital commons - often created by volunteers (e.g. Wikipedia), sometimes with government money (e.g. GPS). Commercial companies mostly just exploit this (GPS: Uber, Google Maps etc; Wikipedia: Google Knowledge Graph, Siri, Alexa etc).
Show threadricardo Dec 1, 2022
@CrimethInc unrelated, but I remember owning the pictured Alcatel phone. 😄