Ask YC: Critique my Facebook app | Hacker News Reader

Ask YC: Critique my Facebook app

5 pointstmm110 comments

Check it out, let me know what you think: http://apps.facebook.com/spreadarumor/

Every Facebook app I've used so far does 1-2 redirects when you first access it and lands you on a generic add application page with a bunch of checkboxes, expecting you to grant it access to all sorts of information without any hint of what the app is or why in the world you would want it- I find this incredibly annoying as a user.

I tried to make the user experience in my application as pleasant as possible. The app does not redirect you, instead it shows screenshots and explains what the app is and why you might be interested in using it.

There's a link to login that pops up a login dialog (again instead of redirecting to the login/add page) so that the transition from reading about the app to using the app requires a minimal number of clicks and page loads.

Also, URLs are very descriptive so when you send them to others they know exactly what is being linked, for example: http://apps.facebook.com/spreadarumor/about/Sumeet_Malakar-5...

Seems like the sort of thing that could take off on Facebook. My Wildfire app is 'similar' in that it uses the social graph to spread news

http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=2399397752

John.

looks pretty solid, clean, and well put together

Personally I'm pretty much burned out on typical facebook apps like this ( vampires, zombies, egg hatching, and so forth ), but I could see a lot of my friends using your app

what did you write it in out of curiousity?

Written in ruby, with the help of the following great technologies (most are ruby gems):

 - ramaze, the simple, modular web-framework (ramaze.net)
 - sequel as the database ORM layer (http://code.google.com/p/ruby-sequel/wiki/CheatSheet)
 - mongrel as the webserver (monkey patched with swiftiply to use eventmachine: http://swiftiply.swiftcore.org/mongrel.html)
 - facebooker for facebook api calls (http://chadfowler.com/2007/9/5/writing-apis-to-wrap-apis)
 - haml for html templating (http://haml.hamptoncatlin.com/)
 - sass for css templating (http://haml.hamptoncatlin.com/docs/sass)
 - analogger for logging (http://analogger.swiftcore.org/)
 - postgres for db backend (and sqlite for dev)

Do we really need an app that helps spread gossip? I admit I haven't installed it and only took a tertiary glance at it...but if it does what it looks like, I think you should use your talents for Good and not for Evil :-)

Perhaps not, but I don't really expect the app to take off anyway. Just needed a simple idea to implement and get familiar with the facebook api and fbml.

That said, it seems the only apps that do take off on facebook are uninspired concepts such as Vampires, Zombies and KissMe.

Does anything not mediocre ever take off on large social sites?

The better question is why?

That's a good question. I think we'll eventually see useful apps take off on social sites. The viral features of the Facebook API, namely integrating with the News Feed, have only been available since around March.

I think the ratio of useful to frivolous users of the Facebook API was much better before the new features came out. Before, the only useful thing you could do was pull down people's friend relationships from Facebook. This alone was extremely useful if you were already building something that had some substance to it.

Now, most of the apps you see are from people who are trying to capitalize on the viral featues of the API to sell ads. Instead of apps being valued for their utility, they're valued for their ability to convince users to invite all of their friends.

Eventually, the hype will die down, and some of the useful applications of the Facebook API will begin to become more prominent. Even now, I only get invitations to sill apps like Vampires and Zombies from one or two of my friends. As Facebook users begin to show more ability to discriminate based on quality, we'll see more people take advantage of the freely accessible social graph to actually do cool things.

Not one for me personally but I think it might turn out to be very sucessful. All the best with it.

yey secrets.

looking good ;)

paul, socialmoth

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