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Comment by vehemenz | Hacker News Reader

I agree, but why present the facade of collecting bug reports via a community forum? Years ago Spotify implemented gapless playback because people asked for it. Then they got rid of mail because it wasn’t popular enough.

I think they have the capability to improve their product, but they have become too reliant on what casual users want. Crowdsourcing isn’t a replacement for product management.

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> they have become too reliant on what casual users want

Isn't that the fate of all software as it grows big? Optimize for the casual users, leave the power users in the dirt. Companies keep forgetting that casual users eventually become power users on the most expensive plan, if you give them the freedom to do so.

That is false. That’s like saying most gym members become gym rats that take premium classes.

No, most users never use it and just forget to cancel and those are the most profitable users to have. Just like for gym memberships.

Yeah, I wouldn't say everyone becomes gym rats, but I think that a lot of users have some power user functionality they use.

In the same sense gyms do not only contain machines being used by everyone, there are overlapping subsets people use.

The feature equivalent of Pareto's principle or something.

Let's get rid of the heavy weights and squat machine and fill the gym up with stationary bikes. Then you piss off the power lifters and the mum that wants to go from stationary bike to a more serious routine will have to look for another gym, because here they're only catering for the casual users and people that forget their membership.

This is what happens with popular software.

You just described Planet Fitness to a T.

Don’t drop your weights or the alarm will go off!!!

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