Here are a few of my favorite observations from Micro.blog this week:
Saying Hello
This is a very minor thing, but I really enjoy the quick little exchanges that sometimes occur when a Micro.blog user I follow sees someone they know pop up on the platform.
These posts are often short and free of any context. For example, “It’s nice to see you here”. Even so, it’s just nice to see people being nice.
And even if the new user has nothing more than a single “hello world” post up so far, I’ll sometimes follow them. After all, if a person I enjoy following appreciates them, maybe I will too. And if I don’t, the cost of unfollowing later is low.
Microreviews
I’ve seen a couple of Micro.blog users post short product reviews that are more than a link and short quip, but less than an in-depth product review.
For example, @singletary posted a short review of the Ring Video Doorbell 2 and @patrickrhone posted a similarly brief review of the GreenMade InstaCrate Collapsible Crate.
I really like this format and will likely try it in the future. In the past, I’ve enjoyed geeking out on product review posts by pushing myself to be comprehensive and weaving in five or six quality photos. The problem is that this is very time-consuming, so I rarely do it anymore.
I like the idea of pushing myself to write useful reviews within a tight length constraint. I also find this type of review enjoyable and helpful to read.
New Ways to Post
Micro.blog is friendly to third-party developers by design, and it’s fun to see developers experimenting and filling gaps.
For example, @jbwhaley created an Alfred workflow for quick posts from the Mac this week. And @mikehaynes is reporting good progress on an Android client for Micro.blog that will make the platform more useful to many people once it’s available.
