Andy Wibbels

I Don’t Have to Host Your Comments

Following this event bopping around the blogosphere.

  1. Rob La Gesse had posted something to his blog.
  2. His FriendFeed account picked it up and aggregated it.
  3. A blogger commented on the FriendFeed item of the post – not the post itself.
  4. La Gesse deletes his FriendFeed account.
  5. The blogger’s comments were deleted and gets pissed and eventually cools down.

My point of view:

Yes, commenters own the copyright to their comments. Unless you have a specific commenting policy, comments are under copyright just like any other created content online.

I however am under no obligation to host your comments. I am not obligated to send you a copy of your comments before I take them down. I don’t have to store them later if you decide you want them back. Simply: I don’t have to pay to host your content.

FriendFeed says that the comments are still in the system – just not attached to anything so they aren’t viewable.

If your comments are that precious to you, shouldn’t you be archiving them somewhere that you control?

It is great that everything is open and aggregated and decentralized but how many more layers of commenting can we add to things? How many more systems can have their own private messaging that replicates email and is built only to annoy users into coming back into the application?

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Andy Wibbels

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3 responses to “I Don’t Have to Host Your Comments”

  1. GirlPie Avatar
    GirlPie

    Thanks for the summary, and for your brilliantly simple POV. Every word you wrote = EXACTLY.

    Reply
  2. Justin Kistner Avatar
    Justin Kistner

    How many more systems can have their own private messaging that replicates email and is built only to annoy users into coming back into the application?

    Here, here! Everyone should host their own content and then people can aggregate pieces they find relevant.
    That future is more than a few years out, but we are laying the groundwork now.

    Reply
  3. yourbloggers Avatar
    yourbloggers

    I totally agree about every word you said and I have an addition for future application…and to make the blogging system more recordable for every blogger visiting another bloggers site… For future blogs – do you think it is applicable and user friendly to have a checkbox next to post comment that gives the poster an option to have their comment emailed to the entered email or has an option to send their post to the blog they are in control of…JUST AN IDEA AND WANTED SOME FEEDBACK… because this could definitely be programmed as part of a blog. Also, do you think there is another angle to consider because there are unending possibilities to build the blog community user friendly goals.
    yourbloggers@gmail.com

    Reply

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