12 votes

If this website wants to be popular and wants to reach critical mass, why is it Invite-only? (This applies in general too)

Posted by brighteyes720
Tags: invites

I don't really understand this model unless server costs are a concern. Google+ did that years ago and it honestly was a failure.

It's just one more step for registering as they are not like restricting the number of invites. Was just wondering that.

18 comments

  1. [3]
    unknown user
    Link
    What if it doesn't? ;) I think that, for now, having too many people here would be Tildes' downfall. There are so many features that need to be implemented in order to help a functioning community...

    If this website wants to be popular

    What if it doesn't? ;)

    I think that, for now, having too many people here would be Tildes' downfall. There are so many features that need to be implemented in order to help a functioning community grow, and hardly any of them are there yet.

    35 votes
    1. [2]
      Neverland
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      I have a related question. Will Tildes ever open up its content to the public in read-only form? I mean can non-signed in users lurk? Will search engines index it? I can see some good arguments...

      I have a related question. Will Tildes ever open up its content to the public in read-only form? I mean can non-signed in users lurk? Will search engines index it?

      I can see some good arguments for both sides of that coin.

      Edit: answer is open to non-signed in users is the plan. Thanks TheMeerkat

      3 votes
  2. [2]
    starchturrets
    Link
    Tildes does not need to be popular. Quality over quantity, so the saying goes.

    Tildes does not need to be popular. Quality over quantity, so the saying goes.

    23 votes
    1. Eug
      Link Parent
      Quality needs quantity though. I'm not against ~ being invite only for now, but you need a lot of people to make it work. I'm sure I'm not the only one who browses and posts to help the site grow...

      Quality needs quantity though. I'm not against ~ being invite only for now, but you need a lot of people to make it work.

      I'm sure I'm not the only one who browses and posts to help the site grow and thrive because I feel it has a lot of potential, rather than for the content that is kind of lacking at the moment.

      1 vote
  3. [5]
    Comment deleted by author
    Link
    1. [3]
      eyehigh
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      Exactly.

      Exactly.

      "Please don't spread this too much yet
      I'd still like to keep it a bit quiet for the first little while, so I can make sure nothing explodes and pay more attention to the site instead of having to worry about who's talking about it and where. It's fine if you want to mention it to some people, but please ask them not to spread it around much as well. If you do tell people, it's probably best to send them to the announcement post as an intro.
      It won't have to be this way for long - this upcoming week, I'm intending to start trying to get some more public attention."
      -Deimos

      7 votes
      1. [2]
        tyil
        Link Parent
        You can make a proper quote block by prepending the text with a >.

        You can make a proper quote block by prepending the text with a >.

        6 votes
        1. eyehigh
          Link Parent
          Thank you! Looks much better now.

          Thank you! Looks much better now.

          2 votes
  4. [2]
    roadrunner
    Link
    Isn’t tildes still technically in alpha phase? If so that’d be a fine reason to keep tildes invite only.

    Isn’t tildes still technically in alpha phase? If so that’d be a fine reason to keep tildes invite only.

    10 votes
  5. Cliftonia
    Link
    Slow growth is a more reasonable pace of work for Deimos.

    Slow growth is a more reasonable pace of work for Deimos.

    5 votes
  6. RyanM
    Link
    Generally, it helps build up demand and allows the website to scale more efficiently.

    Generally, it helps build up demand and allows the website to scale more efficiently.

    4 votes
  7. [3]
    crius
    Link
    You literally joined and created this topic. I don't want to be rude here but have you at least tried to look around for previous topics and the various documents? Don't get me wrong, it's a...

    Registered June 3, 2018

    Posted 23 hours, 59 minutes ago by brighteyes720

    You literally joined and created this topic.

    I don't want to be rude here but have you at least tried to look around for previous topics and the various documents?

    Don't get me wrong, it's a legitimate question but it's been explained over and over in several topics already.

    In short: Burst of population increase would be dangerous right now that we don't have a proper moderation tool available. And that's just the most important reason imho.
    We also don't have a precise idea of which groups we should have, if the groups should be dynamics or not (at the moment, they are not), we still are discussing how to manage "anonymisation" of comments and other stuff that are polishing but important nonetheless.

    Give a read on ~tildes.official

    4 votes
    1. [2]
      brighteyes720
      Link Parent
      Mate, I know I just joined. Honestly, my question was not about this particular website but how the invite-only business model in general makes sense. But I have changed my view now. :) Cheers!

      Mate, I know I just joined.

      Honestly, my question was not about this particular website but how the invite-only business model in general makes sense. But I have changed my view now. :)

      Cheers!

      1 vote
      1. crius
        Link Parent
        Sorry man if I came out blunt. I just read lots and lots of topics asking the same thing over and over in the last days and you had the only fault of being the proverbial straw that broke the...

        Sorry man if I came out blunt. I just read lots and lots of topics asking the same thing over and over in the last days and you had the only fault of being the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back.

        please forgive me and enjoy your stay :)

        2 votes
  8. Algernon_Asimov
    Link
    This website is still in alpha-testing. That means two things: It's not complete. It's still a work in progress. We are being invited to test the website, provide feedback, and offer suggestions....

    This website is still in alpha-testing. That means two things:

    • It's not complete. It's still a work in progress.

    • We are being invited to test the website, provide feedback, and offer suggestions.

    It's not a finished product yet. Let's not make the same mistake that Reddit is currently making, and roll out an unfinished product to a lot of users. Alpha testing is supposed to be limited to a few select users. You're one of the select few.

    When it's finished, the restriction on people joining will probably be relaxed.

    On a slightly different note... I moderate a subreddit which is devoted to in-depth discussion about a science fiction show. We deliberately do not want to be popular: popularity will dilute the quality of discussion by bringing in people who may not be as committed to the original vision as the early adopters. We've used the analogy that we want to be a boutique restaurant serving a select few connoisseurs, rather than a fast-food outlet selling billions of burgers. In fact, we've noticed that. as the subreddit has grown, the quality of discussion has degraded. Sad but true.

    3 votes
  9. godzilla_lives
    Link
    This website currently offers a lot of solid discussion on a variety of topics. I'm sure it could be better (anything can be), but at the moment, it's perfect for me.

    This website currently offers a lot of solid discussion on a variety of topics. I'm sure it could be better (anything can be), but at the moment, it's perfect for me.

    2 votes