Source: Shawn Campbell
When Twitter’s algorithmic timelines started appearing as a test on the social media site, you would have thought they had announced users had to commit a sacrifice before posting. Angry memes were shared, many users threatened to leave the site, and the “end of Twitter” seemed to be on the horizon.
It turns out first impressions don’t always mean anything.
Despite the initial uproar, Twitter’s algorithmic timeline is actually going over well and will soon become the default for all users.
Slate reports Twitter has been gradually rolling out a default algorithmic timeline for users for weeks now, and the reception has been largely positive. According to a Twitter spokesperson quoted in the report, the percentage of users to opt-out of the new timeline has been in the “low single digits.”
This isn’t a case of users being slow to opt-out either. Data shows users are engaging with it more frequently in almost every way compared to the traditional chronologic timeline. Users with the new timeline are tweeting, replying, retweeting, and favoriting more than ever.
Part of the warm reception may be related to how Twitter is handling the rollout. Instead of pushing out the change to everyone all at once, Twitter is gradually rolling it out and notifying every user individually as their timeline changes.
Users who dislike the new timeline can always opt-out and return to the traditional time-based timeline. All you have to do is go to the settings area and uncheck “Show me the best tweets first.”
While Twitter is changing some things up, another controversial move by the site appears to be on the backburner for now. During an appearance on the Today Show, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey stressed the site would be retaining its 140 character limit for Tweets.
During press appearances for the 10th anniversary of the platform, Dorsey clarified they would not be doing away with the character limit. He said, “It’s staying… It’s a good constraint for us, and it allows for of-the-moment brevity.”
