Identi.ca: Twitter Killer or a Distraction?

It really is a shame when you see a service like Twitter put one foot into the door of mainstream and then start foundering so colossally and publicly. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen a company have problems so publicly and drop the ball this hard.

Well, it isn’t as if Twitter is going anywhere – at least yet. Twitter has a lot of inertia. We have communities built up on Twitter. The techies like myself who promote Twitter so much are drudgingly putting up with the downtime issues, but we’re not liking it. We’re frustrated. We’re just WAITING for somebody to swoop in and save the day. The simplicity of Twitter with the stability of FriendFeed.

Well, its possible one has emerged and it is called Identi.ca. You can follow me at http://identi.ca/davidrisley.

Yep, it is a Canadian domain. Don’t know if they are actually Canadian. Their WHOIS record indicates servers at Amazon in Seattle. Perhaps they’re using S3?

What I like about Identi.ca is the similarity to Twitter. Plurk, on the other hand, was so different than I actually found it hard to use. Plurk made the mistake of busting into the microblogging scene by changing the game too drastically. When it comes to microblogging, Twitter is the standard now.

Seeing as we’re in the first few days of Identi.ca’s existence, it is missing several important components such as the ability to easily reply to people (although there is a Greasemonkey script for that), the ability to search for people, URL shortening, etc. According to their FAQ, several enhancements are coming, including:

• SMS updates and notifications
• A Twitter-compatible API
• More AJAX-y interface
• Maps
• Cross-post to Twitter, Pownce, Jaiku, etc.
• Pull messages from Twitter, Pownce, Jaiku, etc.
• Facebook integration
• Hashtags
• Image, video, audio notices
• Automatic url-shortening
• Multilingual interface (using Gettext)

Some aren’t waiting around, and I am always impressed at the speed at which some early adopters find creative ways to make up for a service’s shortcomings.

• @geekygirldawn has made a Yahoo Pipe to track replies
• Greasemonkey script (mentioned above) for easy replies
• Ping.FM has already added Identi.ca integration

The thing that is really promising about Identi.ca is that it is based on open source. From their site:

The software also implements the OpenMicroBlogging protocol, meaning that you can have friends on other microblogging services that can receive your notices.

The goal here is autonomy — you deserve the right to manage your own on-line presence. If you don’t like how Identi.ca works, you can take your data and the source code and set up your own server (or move your account to another one).

Imagine being able to build a network on Identi.ca, cross network on other micro-blogging services (no need to re-connect on every network that comes down the pike), and take your contacts with you. That’s social media bliss! At least potentially. It depends on how it is executed.

The usual suspects of early adopters have all weighed in on the new microblogging platform:

• Corvida says this could blow away Twitter
• Sarah Perez has some tips for early adopters
• Dave Winer talks about some programmers trying to set up a network of clones using the open source software which powers Identi.ca, Laconi.ca.
• Mark Hopkins points out the shortcomings on Mashable
• Suw Charman more or less echos Mashable, saying Identi.ca need sto go further and it will take a lot more to dethrone Twitter.

Interestingly, Robert Scoble has been completely MIA on this one, apparently because somebody hi-jacked his usual Scobleizer handle. I guess this is one of those things where Scoble wasn’t quite as quick to the punch this time. I gotta admit, I get a chuckle at the quick thinking of whoever registered that handle. At the same time, though, it was a chicken shit thing to do. And what is a microblogging platform without Scoble to evangelize it?

I will withhold verdict on Identi.ca. I think it holds a lot of promise, and being based on open source could be cool. It is likely going to lead to a whole bunch of clones, all using the same open source base, with with added capabilities. If we can transfer our networks between them, then it might be a welcome development. Otherwise, it could be nothing but a huge distraction, making the centralization and large user base of Twitter seem like a welcome alternative.

Twitter hasn’t pissed us off enough yet to make us ditch them. Yes, it is annoying, but at the end of the day, wouldn’t we all just prefer that Twitter fix itself and remain top dog? I know I would.

So, no, I’m not leaving Twitter. But, I will definitely begin to use Identi.ca at the same time just in case it turns into something.