I’d like to make a chart of which mobile service providers handle Identi.ca messages seamlessly, and which do not.
If you’ve used Identi.ca over SMS, can you please share in the comments which provider you used, which phone, and how the process works?
Here are two entries to get you started:
Verizon Wireless
Blackberry 8830
SMS works seamlessly – all messages come from the same address (XXXXXXXXXX@laconi.ca), so they thread, and I can respond to any message by simply replying to the message on my phone. I cannot tell the difference between “real” SMS messages and Identi.ca messages.
Verdict: YES
AT&T
iPhone (1st gen)
SMS is annoying – messages come from different numbers, so they don’t thread, and you cannot reply to the number and have it post a message. [The different numbers should all tie back to the same reply address at AT&T, but this does not appear to function properly.]
Verdict: NO
(This post will disappear once I collect the necessary information.)
Dent (n.) – A message sent on Identi.ca.
Dentevent or Dent Event (n.) – An organized meeting of Identi.ca users, usually in real life.
Dentup – See Dentevent.
Identicat (n.) – An Identi.ca user.
This glossary will be updated over time. If there’s a word you’re confused about, please ask in the comments!
Jake Stevenson (@pocketwitdev) stayed up late last night to ensure that all you Windows Mobile users could have a mobile app for Identi.ca. Thanks, Jake!
PockeTwit now supports Identi.ca accounts (and multiple accounts, at that!). You can keep track of your timeline, send dents, read replies, and view profiles, all while on the run.
Jake’s been a very responsive denter, so if you run into any problems or have feature requests, be sure to shoot them his way.
Identi.ca doesn’t yet support turning notifications on/off for specific users.
Until that’s ready, subscribe to the individual RSS feeds for people you’re particularly interested in (and keep these feeds in their own category). They update pretty quickly, and if you’re in Google Reader all day like I am, it’s a great way to catch conversation from your friends without simply refreshing the page.
If you aren’t already aware, you can also subscribe to single RSS feed of everyone you’re subscribed to – just go to your “Personal” tab and subscribe to the feed for that page.
Identi.ca might be the new kid on the block, but it’s already become the best choice. Here’s why:
- It’s open source. Frustrated by a bug or by the lack of a feature? Add it yourself! (Or convince a PHP-savvy friend to do it for you.) You won’t have to wait months for an error to be fixed or beg and plead for a particular feature to be implemented.
- It’s federated. A federated system means that you can install your own version of Laconi.ca (the platform Identi.ca runs on) on your own server without losing any connections to people with accounts on other versions. This is like email – you can have a GMail address and still communicate with people on Yahoo or their own domain name.
Federation is a work-in-progress, but there are multiple known instances of Laconi.ca that are up and running (just with some bugs that are being ironed out).
- The developers ROCK. Watching this video of Laconi.ca founder @evan was all it took for me to know there is some serious, passionate, skilled developer talent forming the building blocks of the service.
Evan and other devs are also actively communicating on a daily basis, and I’ve seen them respond to questions/concerns on blogs of all popularity levels in under an hour.
If you’re not on Identi.ca yet, what’s stopping you from coming over?
If you’re already instant messaging, incorporating Indenti.ca into your routine is quick and easy. You can send and receive messages and manage tracks through IM.
- Add “laconica@west.spy.net” to your IM friends list.
- Here’s the list of currently available commands.
add_service Add a service you can post to.
autopost Enable or disable autopost
help Get help for commands.
off Disable updates.
on Activate updates.
post Post an update to a service.
remove_service Remove (log out of) a service.
services List all known services.
track Track a topic
tracks List your tracks.
untrack Stop tracking a topic
You can access this list at any time by sending “help” to the above address.
A billion props to @dustin for setting up this IM tool.
