Here’s what Jack Dorsey has to say about timeline changes switching to algorithm versus chronological live stream
Twitter boss and co-founder Jack Dorsey has responded to a news report about major changes to timelines on the social network which had left users up in arms.
Dorsey tweeted that there is no imminent plan to reorder timelines with a new algorithm, changing from its current chronological order. The reported change sent Twitter into a frenzy with #RIPTwitter trending for much of Saturday.
Hello Twitter! Regarding #RIPTwitter: I want you all to know we're always listening. We never planned to reorder timelines next week.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
Twitter is live. Twitter is real-time. Twitter is about who & what you follow. And Twitter is here to stay! By becoming more Twitter-y.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
Look at "while you were away" at the top of your TL. Tweets you missed from people you follow. Pull to refresh to go back to real-time.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
I *love* real-time. We love the live stream. It's us. And we're going to continue to refine it to make Twitter feel more, not less, live!
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
Twitter can help make connections in real-time based on dynamic interests and topics, rather than a static social/friend graph. We get it.
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
Thank you all for your passion and trust. We will continue to work to earn it, and we will continue to listen, and talk!
— jack (@jack) February 6, 2016
The response suggest that real time will stay, but an expanded "while you were away" tab could be in the works, bringing together top tweets from users' timelines.
The move highlights the struggle Twitter has in keeping loyal fans happy but also making changes designed to attract new users.