The debate has become a little aggressive and I feel a bit ashamed of broadcasting those aggressive parts with the rest of it, but I can’t really atomize it and I think it’s important for the health of the semweb ecosystem that the core question be addressed: what is the right PR approach for semantic start-ups, and beyond that, tech ventures?

I am referring to Twine, which, again, is in the spotlight after a VentureBeat article by Chris Morrison, who probably didn’t see that one coming… The debate erupted after the publication of the article, arguing that the coverage was not the whole story. I was one of those commenters, as I questioned the choice of dates of the traffic graph, and wondered why questions of user engagement were once again left out. As a previous “power user” (but not the one using the pseudo “previous power user” in venturebeat comments! My only pseudo is “gregboutin”!), I have been vocal about this for the simple reason that I think Twine could quite easily deliver a better experience, and in particular a better noise-to-signal ratio. My view is that improved focus on a core benefit is the key to beating Twitter and Facebook in adoption. Yes, only that. Isn’t it positive? Unfortunately, Twine has failed me, and obviously many others, on this dimension so far. So much that I pretty much stopped using it. (more…)