If you want others to follow you, you have to offer them your users. And a format alone has no users. #
And you have to trust your users to choose the best product, and you have to have a great product, that they appreciate, even though they have choice.#
Just coming out with something better in a format will get you zero uptake. Unless you have users they can switch to their product, they simply won’t hear you.#
That’s why Atom never replaced RSS, which already did everything people needed and was already supported by the NYT and the news industry. #
That’s why AT Proto will never overcome the huge lead Twitter already has.#
For more tips on what does and doesn't matter in open formats and protocols, check out my Rules for Standards-makers. #
Last update: Friday September 4, 2026; 11:34 AM EDT.
You know those obnoxious sites that pop up dialogs when they think you're about to leave, asking you to subscribe to their email newsletter? Well that won't do for Scripting News readers who are a discerning lot, very loyal, but that wouldn't last long if I did rude stuff like that. So here I am at the bottom of the page quietly encouraging you to sign up for the nightly email. It's got everything from the previous day on Scripting, plus the contents of the linkblog and who knows what else we'll get in there. People really love it. I wish I had done it sooner. And every email has an unsub link so if you want to get out, you can, easily -- no questions asked, and no follow-ups. Go ahead and do it, you won't be sorry! :-)