Mastodawn

Makusiaga Jan 16, 2023

Craig Hockenberry

You want to know how I really feel?

https://furbo.org/2023/01/15/the-shit-show/

P.S. That's the tame version.

The Shit Show • furbo.org

Well, it happened. We knew it was coming. A prick pulled the plug. And what bothers me most about it is how Space Karen did it. My mom passed away just before Christmas. Her decline was something everyone in the family saw coming and we prepared for her demise. It still hurts like hell, but […]

Furbo.org by Craig Hockenberry

Pierre Lebeaupin Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Your restraint reminds me of that of @bynkii when Apple pulled the plug on the Xserve… we all knew how he really wanted to express it.

Bynkii Jan 15, 2023

@PierreLebeaupin @chockenberry I was in the middle. I loved the Xserve, but it always seemed to have two time-limited purposes that had been fulfilled:

1) create a commodity-priced Datacenter server

2) show that Apple was an enterprise fit

Both those things had been accomplished, and honestly, had everyone who was upset about the serve going away bought one? Probably have lasted longer.

I liked them a lot, but I don’t recall being that upset about their end. It sucked, but it didn’t SUCK.

Morfydd Jan 15, 2023

@bynkii @PierreLebeaupin @chockenberry I was a build engineer for products that ran on Mac and Win. We bought a LOT of Xserves (gritting our teeth about the cost premium vs our Win machines). Lovely machines!

I don’t know where we build our OSX products now - shortly after that I moved to a cloud product, where, because Apple didn’t allow virtualization, I never had to build on OSX again.

At the time it absolutely felt like a slap in the face to us as an enterprise customer.

Pierre Lebeaupin Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry @bynkii Well I seem to remember a MacWorld article implying a lot of profanity at the time… https://www.macworld.com/article/208838/xserve-30.html

More seriously, I just tried to remember a past event that would have caused you, the local reference for profanity, a similar reaction to Craig’s; I’m not directly comparing the two announcements at all.

Xserve is dead… so now what?

Mac IT expert John C. Welch tries to understand Apple's reasons for killing its Xserve server, while explaining why the Mac Pro and Mac Mini are not adequate replacements... no matter what Apple says to the contrary.

Macworld

Bynkii Jan 15, 2023

@PierreLebeaupin @chockenberry oh holy shit, I forgot that article. Which brought back a lot of memories.

I think I was really more pissed about the lack of communication (which apple is still just shit at) than anything else. I have no doubt the numbers supported the decision, but the lack of communication, and the absolutely obviousness that Apple did not have a good follow-up at the time were clear.

Looking back, a lot of things are obvious, but at the time, ye gods.

@chockenberry Wonderful read!!

Has it really been 16 years?? I've been using Twitterrific off and on since it first came out.

I love the callout for ActivityPub!!

Craig Hockenberry Jan 15, 2023

@travelingflwr Timestamps don't lie - kinda caught me by surprise, too 😃

@chockenberry I'll be eagerly watching for what's next from you.

Andy Piper Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry 😔

Craig Hockenberry Jan 15, 2023

@andypiper Just when you all started to make it better, it suddenly got a lot worse. Such a shame.

Andy Piper Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry once Chirp was cancelled, I checked out / knew I couldn’t do anything further. Thanks to you and your team (and all of the other apps) for sticking with it for so long - your users appreciate it. Kudos.

ePirat Jan 15, 2023

@andypiper Whats is/was Chirp?

glynor Jan 16, 2023

@ePirat @andypiper https://developer.twitter.com/en/chirp

Tom Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry my condolences on your mom, and to the Twitterrific team.

Jeremy Burge Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry more like King Chickenshithead (but yes, wtf, etc etc)

Alan Purdom Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry I know it’s old hat but including RSS feeds would be great. That also opens a federated reader up to Reddit.

Simon 🌻Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Beautifully written. Really sorry to hear about your mum. I really hope your company can move on, come out the side and be successful.

Eric Blair Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry I’m sorry for your loss and for the bullshit you, @gedeonm, @bigzaphod and the rest of the Iconfactory team have to deal with.

When I look back on the last 15 or so years, Twitterrific’s one of the things I can’t imagine not having, for a slew of reasons.

Steve Hayman √Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Thank you - and I'm sorry about your mom. I hope she was proud of this thing you built that gave us all so much joy for 16 years.

Craig Hockenberry Jan 15, 2023

@Shayman Mom never understood what I did, but was proud of me doing something I obviously loved.

Steve Hayman √Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry She sounds JUST like my Mom. I hope they can connect on whatever social network is running up there.

Craig Hockenberry Jan 15, 2023

@Shayman I think it's called a telephone with a battery that never runs out!

@pineywoozle ‘s #3WordNote Jan 16, 2023

@chockenberry @Shayman I loved Twitterific, used it for years in tandem with Twitter on a different device,sorry, you got caught in the toads dysfunction. Your mom sounds like mine. They understood our joy and didn’t have to understand what prompted it to be supportive💕Sorry for your loss. 💔

Buck Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry love the zeal and energy… great post! (Very saddened to hear about your Mom however ❤️)

@chockenberry let us know when you guys have a Mastodon client. Twitteriffic was my first Twitter client. It defined those early days.

You’ve got my $$$ when you’re ready.

Arno Appenzeller Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry sorry for your loss!
And I like the idea of the timeline for everything pretty much.

Mike Rose Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry man, that sucks.

John Chidgey Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry I’m sorry for your loss (your mother) and that Elon did this to Twitterific. I’ve used it over the years, and remember when you coined “Tweets” when you were in the shower (though I was not there personally). Onwards to better things ❤️

James Tinmouth Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry so good. So right.

Ross Kimes Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry you said it perfectly. I’m looking forward to the group of great developers that built stuff for Twitter over the last 15 years turning their attention back to the open web. There will be a transition, but we will all be better for it.

Tito Ciuro Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry amen Craig. Thank you and your team for all the hard work. I truly look forward seeing what your team comes up with next. Onward! 🤙🏻🚀

Shingo Mouse 🌳Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Maybe it could be found at www . theshit . show and starring Donald J. Trump on how he wants to turn the United States into a cesspool of crime and villainy.

Morfydd Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry I’m so sorry for your losses.

Seth H.Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Thank you for all that you’ve done to make Twitter a better place for the last 16 years 🫡

John Conway Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry @paul I like that you’re thinking about more than a mastodon client. As you say federation opens up so much more.

Eric O.Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry A universal timeline sounds incredible. I was an early Twitterrific user, and I’m grateful for your work. Sorry to hear about your Mom—I lost my Dad a year ago, and it’s still *weird* sometimes to not be able to pick up the phone and call him.

@chockenberry just wanted to say thank you for all your work in the past. Your app was the first 3rd party app I used when it was released on Mac. All my expectations of what a good Twitter/Mastodon app should be became set by your team’s work. ❤️

Kee Hinckley Jan 15, 2023

What you said right here. Absolutely!

❝ Federation exposes a lot of different data sources that you’d want to follow. Not all of these sources will be Mastodon instances: you may want to stay up-to-date with someone’s Micro.blog, or maybe another person’s Tumblr, or someone else’s photo feed. There are many apps and servers for you to choose from.
It feels like the time is right for a truly universal timeline. ❞

Joe Pasqua Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Deepest condolences on the passing of your mother.

Sandhu Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry My condolences to you and all the good people in this thread who have lost loved ones.

Nick Radcliffe has moved Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Easily 99% of my usage of Twitter was through Twitterrific (Mac, iOS, iPad). It's simply unbearable through Twitter's own apps/site. Icon Factory is the best; Twitterrific was the best. But time to move on. Agree with every word in the post.

Gabriel Pettier Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry condolences, especially about your mom. Sad to see years of work going down the drain because someone is on a destructive ego trip, i try not to be sentimental about code, and focus on what was learned, but yeah, sigh.

Oli Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Thank you for posting this.

1st - I’m sorry for yours and your families loss. I send you all lots of love.

2nd - I’ve been using Twitterrific since the beginning. It was a window to a world that helped me make friends and feel happy. You and your team made a massive difference to my life and I’m very grateful for that.

3rd - Your points around reimagining the experience this new chapter will bring are very exciting. I can’t wait to see what you let us play with.

Ethan Marcotte Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry 💜💜💜, Craig. I can’t imagine how hard the last few months have been.

I wouldn’t have stuck with the birdsite as long as I did if it hadn’t been for Twitterrific. I’ll always be grateful for the work you all put into it.

Wraithe Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry
I think the really impressive thing about Twitterrific is, after having used it for, probably 99.5% of my Twitter usage, now trying to use the official twitter app seriously is just a complete shit show.

I’m talking windows 3.1 “how the fuck do people get things done on this app” level of shit show.

It really shows how good an app Twitterrific was/is.

Thanks for the many years of great usage!

Now, on Mastodon I think “well, there’s this feature that Twitterrific has…”

kytyn Jan 16, 2023

@Wraithe @chockenberry
Exactly! I’d see people complaining about something Twitter had changed, the timeline fuckery or ads or whatever, and I’d just shake my head because Twitterrific was always amazing. Hands down my favorite feature was grabbing a whole thread and being able to send it as text in one block.

Wraithe Jan 16, 2023

@Kytyn @chockenberry
Ha! I was considering mentioning that one, that is absolutely my favorite. That and the search!

veb Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry I'm a big fan of your blog, I've messaged you privately because I think I may be able to give you something that'll help with Fediverse stuff you may wanna do eventually. 😅 (I'm not asking for anything in return).

sdevore (moving)Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry can’t wait to see what catches your attention and energy.

Greg Greene Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry My only disagreement with you: it’ll be a $44B version of 4chan. Otherwise: (*chef kiss*)

I’m as excited about the prospect of a universal timeline as you seem. Can’t wait to see what you build next.

🅹 of 2023 Jan 16, 2023

@ggreeneva IIRC, Twitteriffic were the first to build a Twitter client for the OG iPhone when *the only apps were jailbroken ones*. I think you could install it from Cydia. MASSIVE respect. those were the days, tbh. just a huge amount of software innovation before Apple started their own app store and, frankly, shit started to go downhill in a lot of ways.
@chockenberry

Greg Greene Jan 16, 2023

@0xkruzr Yep, you have that history correct. Hate to see Twitteriffic given such an ignominious brush off, but Twitter’s loss — and it is Twitter’s loss, whatever Elmo thinks — is this platform’s gain.

Karel P Kerezman Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry As a fellow denizen of the pre-at-replies, pre-hashtags days of Twitter, I salute you for your efforts. I didn't use Twitteriffic myself, but know folks who do/did and loved it.

Mike Wiebe Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry so disrespectful to the devoted devs. And also incredibly disrespectful to the many users that use third party apps. Shows you everything you need to know about their values.

LillyLyle/Count Melancholia Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Hoping to see Tooterific soon ;-)

Aaron Huslage Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry I'd love to hear the un-tame version.

Mikko Alasaarela Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Agree with your sentiment- I'm excited about the future of ActivityPub based decentralized social media, and will build new products here as well!

Schwieb Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry It all sucks. I’ve used Twitterrific for years… you all put your heart and soul into it and we noticed. Thank you for such a great run, product, and team.

CoolJojo 😄Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry Sorry this thing happens to you and other third party app developers. Hope we can build a strong and better community in the fediverse and let the evil birdsite slowly die. 🙏

Jason Sims Jan 15, 2023

@chockenberry I started using Twitter in early 2007 because of Twitterrific. You guys don’t get the credit you deserve for helping the service get its wings.