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Digsby's at it again - this time they want you to tweet for dollars
If you happen to be connected to Digsby's email sewage pipe, you no doubt received the same offer I did. It read kind of like this: "Hey, we're friends with the dudes at ad.ly and they pay famous Twitterers to annoy the crap out of you with sponsored tweets. Now you can make cash and lose respect that way, too!"
You want us to sign up for a sponsored tweet program now? So that we can tweet about "really cool stuff?" And I can win a Macbook pro and earn 12% of what my referrals earn just for doing this?
Wow, sign me up!
Sign me up for a big helping of get the hell out of my inbox, that is.
I'm also not sure why -- if this is such a great opportunity -- Digsby wouldn't share it on their official blog. Have a look - as of tonight, anyway, there's no mention of ad.ly anywhere. If you're not proud and/or excited enough to blog about it, why pester your users via email? Are Digsby's friendships so swift, so fleeting, that they'll jump into bed with anyone with sizable Twitter followings?
Did I mention that ad.ly have 70,000+ followers? Do you think ad.ly might like the 12% cut of their referrals? This just reeks of conniving, sell-out shit. I understand that Digsby wants to earn money, but there's got to be a better way. I use tons of free software, and none of it has tried to profit from my idle CPU, push a bunch of install offers for craptacular software, or ask me to compromise my integrity in exchange for a few pennies.
I'm certainly glad I can do everything I would want to do with Digsby with Pidgin instead.
Comments
21
Subscribe to commentsMatthew NawrockiDec 15th 2009 10:08PM
It's not really that big of a deal. Just throw it in the spam pile. Digsby is just trying to make money somehow. Just chill out already... :P
DemoDec 15th 2009 10:37PM
Agreed, clicking delete isn't that big a deal to me if the program remains free and free of ads in the program.
polobunnyDec 15th 2009 11:42PM
Except you're purposely ignoring the repeated offenses against their userbase.
No, one email is not much as you said. But it's constant unethical practices by the same company. Adware, distributed computing without warning the user beforehand, mass e-mails etc.
Have you read their terms of usage or their commitment to security? Their totally technology in-savvy babble about their so said security and how they handle your credentials?
If you got 15 minutes go and read, you'll see how DOTSYNTAX LLC is very akin to every other advertising website.
You'd think a company working on a cross platform multi-IM client would know better about the power of the internet and at least show some respect to their clients. This isn't the case, you're a number and they're not afraid to tell you.
anderzkyDec 15th 2009 10:54PM
I really think I've come to the end of the line with Digsby.
I've been using it for almost as long as it's been out but I've always thought the extra pop-ups were way out of order.
When one appears saying something like "Vote for us over at Lifehacker" I usually think "well I might have - I read Lifehacker and would have seen the poll and voted in it - but I'm not voting for you now you've annoyed me with this spammy pop-up"
When I saw the ad.ly message earlier I realised that I was coming to my end with them. I hoped they would learn their lesson with the negative feedback for their decisions in the past, but I now realise this is just the kind of company they are.
ChristianDec 15th 2009 10:58PM
Honestly, I used Digsby for a couple of months until I got my Trillian Astra invite (when it was still beta) and went directly to that. I don't miss one single thing from Digsby and if I went back I would miss a lot from Astra.
Bill EbyDec 15th 2009 11:58PM
So, what you are saying, Lee, is that since Digsby, a free program, annoys you a little bit, you feel the need to bash them for trying to make a little money? This is not the responsible journalism I would expect from Download Squad. Two wrongs don't make a right... and yes, your opinion here when I want news is annoying. From now on let me form my own opinion from what you write, don't try and shape me like some unthinking mass.
As long as Digsby remains free and ad free, I'll continue to use it. Being able to delete, and mark as spam e-mails I don't care about (like the Digsby e-mail) without visiting the website is something nothing else has right now. That and it being the best interface in my opinion is the reason I will stay with it.
Lee MathewsDec 16th 2009 1:22AM
Bill, what you do with my opinion is up to you. I'm not forcing you to think one way or another.
This is a blog, after all. You're going to see opinion pieces from time to time.
MykeDec 16th 2009 5:43AM
Bill, you'd probably eat anything as long as it was tasty. Good luck with that.
foistlyDec 15th 2009 11:56PM
"Hapless Douchebag"
...that is why i love download squad
JeffDec 16th 2009 1:00AM
I got that same email and I LOVE how you cropped the screenshot of the email to not include the unsubscribe link. I removed myself and it was just 1 click. Its easy to not receive emails if you don't want them. This is very poor journalism, and honestly just app bashing. Seriously just unsubscribe and quit whining. I am actually going to unsubscribe from this RSS too, its not like I can unsubscribe from your advertising.
DuffinDec 16th 2009 8:58AM
Okay, bye! You obviously didn't read what the issue is.
CharaxDec 16th 2009 12:24PM
Here's the thing, though - the Digsby team are sending this out through the Digsby Newsletter. You know, the thing you sign up for if you want a Letter full of News about Digsby.
"Please sign up to this service so we can haz cash" is not proper use of the personal information contained within their subscriber database. Furthermore, if you "just unsubscribe and quit whining" you unsubscribe from the entire newsletter, not just the advertising crap they try and send you.
I stuck with Digsby for a long time, but quite frankly they deserve the negative press from their screw-ups.
MxxConDec 16th 2009 2:04AM
Digsby always was, is and looks like will be this http://www.flickr.com/photos/31535569@N00/2599196035
maf teechrDec 16th 2009 3:00AM
The fact that Digsby has video support and Pidgin does not is what keeps Digsby on my hard drive.
CharaxDec 16th 2009 12:26PM
Isn't Digsby's "Video Support" handled through Tokbox? You can use Tokbox without having to use Digsby, y'know. It's a great service
MarkDec 16th 2009 6:15AM
Hmmm, and when I clicked on the comments link on this article I was confronted with a full-page advertisment. I hate those, why are you subjecting me to them.
Personally, I think Digsby is trying to find a way to keep development afloat - and hey why not? It's legitimate. I don't mind as long as they keep things as opt-in-out as possible.
julio.go83Dec 16th 2009 8:15AM
The only thing I don't like about Digsby is the logo, ugly as hell.
e-mails? what?
xxl3wwDec 16th 2009 12:05PM
How do I opt-out of all these Cadillac ads on your webpage? Advertising without opt-out is such a slimey tactic. This page also ask me to download plugins to play these ads. This must be some kind of tactic to get flash/java on my PC.
TroyDec 16th 2009 12:20PM
Digsby is years behind in the IM client game. They bring nothing new that no other IM client has done before. Everything they claim to be ground breaking has been done before by either Trillian, Miranda, or Pidgin.
Why do so many of you get all up in arms when someone thinks Digsby isn't the best? It isn't that great of a program like many of you praise it to be.
polobunnyDec 16th 2009 2:19PM
I'm just as surprised as you to see so many feeling the need to defend Digsby as if Digsby and DOTSYNTAX LLC ever cared about anything but the money in their pockets.
It's not all black and white, so inherently they're no absolutely evil, but are you guys sleeping? Refer to the boiling frog anecdote...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_frog