For a while now, we’ve been tracking a number of companies who are hard at work trying to build the ultimate social networking desktop app. We’ve talked about TweetDeck, Twhirl / Seesmic Desktop, AlertThingy, and there are many more especially if you also include the ones that focus only on Twitter (Tweetie, Nambu, Twitterific, etc.).
Another horse in this race that barely gets a mention is Sobees, probably in big part because of the fact it’s only available for Windows users (with the latest .NET framework, moreover), although it doesn’t really deserve to be below the radar this much at all.
We covered the company’s social network aggregator when it entered public beta, and wrote that they were aiming to attract a mainstream audience for their software, which enables users to manage a fairly wide variety of web apps and social networking services from their desktops. It’s a nifty companion that plugs into Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Flickr, YouTube and many more web services, but I’ve always felt it was far too overloaded with features for me to use it on a daily basis.
So I was interested when the company set out to build a stand-alone client for Twitter, Facebook and Twitter Search. And just as they were working on that, Facebook launched its Open Stream API so they made thankful use of it quite rapidly and converted the API to .NET and integrated the stream into the new client. The software is now in alpha and publicly available under the name bDule, and it’s definitely worth checking out even if you only use one of the two services it supports.
Soon, we’ll do a feature-by-feature comparison for all the existing social desktop applications, but for now let me just say Sobees is very much worthy of being included whenever someone talks about Facebook / Twitter clients. As mostly all of the apps mentioned on top bDule is a bit of a memory drain, and at times renders a bit slow, but the UI is really well thought-out (love the different templates you can switch to in just one mouse-click) and it does what it’s supposed to do really well.
Too bad it’s Windows / .NET only, because I’m sure there’s an audience out there that’s looking for just this type of app.
How come the Tweetie article never said – “too bad it’s only Mac because I’m sure there’s an audience out there that’s looking for just this type of app.”? – http://www.tech...for-the-masses/
The anti-MS bias come out thick.
Well I’m on a PC and intend to use bDule, and won’t be able to test Tweetie any time soon.
Don’t worry Robin, I played with Tweetie for Mac at work, it’s trash if you follow more than 3 people. You are not missing much.
Agreed. However, I did not even bother to trash the application … Its still in my Applicatons folder. I just don’t use it.
Your comment about needing the latest .net shows not only mac bias, but tech ignorance. Latest .net is a good thing, how long before you get up to speed.
P.S. Please, no articles on how apple makes you run iPhone OS on the iPhone, but I bet that you want to.
“For a while now, we’ve been tracking a number of companies”
Really? Cause all I saw was twitter
TechCrunch could use a real journalist on it staff. You know, someone who actually sought out interesting startups to write about instead of just regurgitating lazy and worthless Twitter news.
we cover plenty of interesting startups besides Twitter, get your facts straight.
Try scrolling through the current front-page of TechCrunch. All I’m saying is there’s a reason Time magazine voted this into the top 10 most overrated blogs. Wasn’t like that pre-Twitter. You guys have gotten lazy.
What’s Time magazine?
and I could do with a girlfriend. Dream on.
Liking it so far. Love that it’s Windows and not Adobe Air. If it adds notifications, reduces memory footprint and minimize to taskbar, it’s a keeper. Also hope Digsby improves its Twitter functionality soon…
SO close to being great. I like to keep Tweetdeck clean by clicking the “trash can” icon at the bottom of each column. Makes it easy to see at a glance if anything new is in there. This doesn’t seem to have any way to clear a column to wait for new entries…
Web 2.0 dead or what… why the sudden rush-back to desktop clients? [as i've repeatedly said on TC back in 2007/2008, as a msft products fan..]
Let’s face it, the desktop will prevail (ie., 1 of the 3 screens)..
(and, no, these aren’t really “smart clients” — at least doesn’t look like so…)
There’s much bigger audience outside of the Web 2.0 crowd and that audience will choose a native Windows app over an Adobe AIR without a doubt as they don’t even know what Adobe or AIR is.
bDule is still very alpha and errors pop up like crazy on Windows XP. It definitely needs a lot of work, polishing as text is hard to read, a new name – that’s fore sure, but it will definitely be a great tool for our demographic at least.
What if they’re on a Mac?
Robin,
“Too bad it’s Windows / .NET only, because I’m sure there’s an audience out there that’s looking for just this type of app.”
Right, because it being available to 90% of the market and being .NET 3.5 (that you will have been updated automatically to if you use Vista, that comes by default in windows 7 and that pretty much anyone that considers a experienced user in XP should already have updated to) makes its audience somehow marginal????
You are kidding me right?.
AIR is as marginal in terms of marketshare based on that perspective.. even if it is cross platform (IF well enabled)
There is another thing.this is ClickOnce enabled with stream install and stream updated.. there is nothing as easy to install, uninstall and update than that.. AIR way of doing things is BASED on ClickOnce
Has there been a survey of Twitter users lately as to what platform they’re on? In addition to mobile vs. Desktop?
Another toy for people to play with. These things seem to pop up as fast as they fail.
By the way, to me Facebook’s own client is the best for Facebook at this point – it has consistent styling, supports both comments and likes and it’s simple and just working. Next year, when nobody even remembers what Twitter was, those multi-client apps supporting Identi.ca, Twitter, 12seconds, and other extinct services will be irrelevant and we’ll all be using either Facebook’s, or Microsoft’s client on the desktop.
What can make a change is the release of an open-source client like Spaz.
So, it would seem like your requirement is for everyone to be on Facebook, and conform to a norm that the social media network @ large has yet to embrace. But hey, if you can make money predicting the future like that, it’s your call….
Sorry. .Net is so lame. Who develops in .NET any more?
dat’s messed up
all these desktop clients have no chance to make money, they are a dime-a-dozen
You left out Digsby
When are you nerds ever going to realise, that the average jack jones will only ever visit a webite which
(a) Has an easy to remember name. – and
(b) Is easy to use.
Look at all of the biggest websites around today,
Google, Yahoo, Amazon, eBay, Wikipedia, YouTube, MySpace, Twitter and Facebook.
And what do they all have in common my pedigree chums.
They have an easy to remember name and are all easy to use.
What type of a bleedin name is Alertthingy, or how about fucking Twhirl.
These names may mean something in the tech community, but for the average John Doe they will never be found or even used.
Most of you smart alecs here seem to think that some of these pouncing sounding websites are the best thing since sliced bread.
Well let me tell you this my TC chums, nearly all of them will be toast in a couple of years.
Crashed for me.
Can’t get bDule to install. The interface looks good, though.
Thanks for this great article and the all comments. We are going to make quick improvements based on your comments. @Manuel, @ mickmel, we’re currently working on these features. @Henry, @angusnb, I would be happy to help you if you contact us at info (at) sobees (dot) com.