Ben Guttmann

Twitter's done for

It’s taken nearly half a year since Elon Musk took over Twitter, but it seems that the pot’s finally gotten warm enough where the frogs are jumping. It’s sad that essentially one man can ruin something used by hundreds of millions. Twitter wasn’t perfect, but it was something valuable. And now it’s gone.

April 10, 2023

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Mind the hype cycle

I’ve been finding myself making the same hand gesture on a lot of Zoom calls recently. I flick my finger up, wiggle it up and down, and trail off to the right in a straight line.I draw this oscillating line when I talk about AI. Or crypto. Or the “metaverse.” Or even Taylor Swift tickets. It’s the hype cycle.

March 15, 2023

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Don’t name things “my-“ or “your-“

Log on to your utility company’s website. What’s the section for your account called? Probably something like “My Account” “Your Account.” Ever since MySpace launched in 2003, this naming convention has sneakily stuck around in digital products. Twenty years later, it’s probably time for it to go.

February 23, 2023

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Samuel Morse and the power of thinking smaller

For most of human history, the speed limit on long-distance communication wasn’t a matter of 5G bandwidth or even how fast an operator could connect your phone call. It was how fast a horse could gallop. Samuel Morse changed that by thinking small.

February 9, 2023

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The people want train travel

Our relationship with air travel is tenuous. But, on contrast: trains are great. Hopeful travelers, particularly Gen Z and Millennials, are noticing this. In Pinterest’s 2023 predictions, they called out train travel as gearing up for a “major comeback.”

January 3, 2023

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