★ Amy Star ★Jul 5, 2023

⚠️ HOT TAKE ⚠️

cohost is a nice website run by cool people and i enjoy the things that are posted there and the people that inhabit it. it's design philosophy is admirable, despite its growing pains. i hope it succeeds in its mission, which will be a net benefit to the internet and its users.

⚠️ HOT TAKE ⚠️

Show threadCalamity Beast SeydlitzJul 5, 2023
@AmyZenunim I couldn't find anything solid against the cohost folks, except the cub thing which they've since corrected. everything else seems like vague insinuations and innuendo, the kind common to conspiracy theories
Show threadnarylisJul 5, 2023
@pynkbites @AmyZenunim about the most concrete thing i’ve heard lodged against them is that they don’t seem to be taking the end of their runway seriously at all.

knowing that you won’t make payroll in a month should be a reason to set aside what you’re working on to focus on things that will bring the site closer to self-sustenance. it’s not clear from their latest posting that they fully appreciate that fact even this close to being out of money, and it’s led me to agree with the chorus of folks who say that the people in charge seem deeply unserious about what’s required yo actually keep it running.

granted, running a social media website has *never* been terribly cost-effective (c.f. metafilter’s recent funding woes) but you’d think that the impending end of money there would bring some more urgency involved in trying to make it so. indeed, based on their conversion rates, i can only imagine the recent uptick in the number of cohost users since july 1 has only accelerated their precarious financial situation, not helped it.
Show thread★ Amy Star ★Jul 5, 2023

@narylis @pynkbites imho they adequately explained the situation: the site was supposed to have ko-fi/patreon-like features by Q2, but the principal developer got COVID (and then long COVID) and wasn't able to get those features out the door.

in general, they already have a roadmap for money-making features but they're behind schedule because their "bus factor" is effectively zero given that they're so small.

in the meantime, it seems like everyone is glossing over the fact that their financial report specifically called that out those issues, in favour of painting them as some sort of naive ninnies who don't know anything about running a websites, probably due to some sort of thinly-veiling leftist trashing that we all love to do to each other, and the narrative has become "these people aren't poor/lean &mean enough to succeed" which is ironically the most pro-capitalist stance to take on it all.

it's like everyone wants it to fail for no other reason other than to convince themselves that no good can ever survive in this world.

Show threadCalamity Beast Seydlitz
@AmyZenunim @narylis what in the haunted stars is a "bus factor"
Jul 5, 2023 at 8:34pmWeb
Show thread★ Amy Star ★Jul 5, 2023

@pynkbites @narylis

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bus_factor

"how many teammates can get hit by a bus before the project crawls to a halt or ceases functioning entirely?"

Bus factor - Wikipedia

Show threadRylaJul 5, 2023
@AmyZenunim @pynkbites @[email protected] what a name...
Show threadCalamity Beast SeydlitzJul 5, 2023
@junho8 @AmyZenunim @narylis Oh, so they lack operational depth in staffing key people. I understand now.
Show threadCalamity Beast SeydlitzJul 5, 2023
@junho8 @AmyZenunim @narylis Regarding the planned Patron-alike features, do they have a plan for circumventing restrictions on adult content? Most payment processors won't touch that, and those who do are quite expensive.