I sat down thinking I was going to write about how FlyChat, a new iPhone app, is kind of creepy. Then I realized it’s actually a lot like Twitter in some regards. And that’s not to say that Twitter isn’t creepy in some ways. But it’s an accepted form of creepy. FlyChat, however, isn’t just yet.
Here’s the basic idea behind FlyChat: Social networks often limit you to interacting with people that you already know, either from the online world or the real world. But FlyChat wants to connect you with people that you don’t already know, based on location and interests. Okay, it’s not quite that creepy. It’s a little more innocent than that.
Basically, you write a note and attach it to a fly. You then select a region you want that fly to travel to. A person in that area can see your note and your profile which includes your picture and a few things about you, and can decide if they want to respond or not. Each of these flychats also has a category which you put it into to let potential readers know what it will be about. The more FlyChats you send out, the more you can receive in return. The company considers these messages to be like “high-tech messages in a bottle.”
So why on Earth would you want to use a service like this? Well as I said, while most social networks focus on establishing your existing connections, FlyChat wants to help you make new ones. Some people are into that. Second, imagine you’re planning a trip somewhere that you don’t know anyone. With FlyChat, you can potentially make some contacts before you go. Though, obviously, that could potentially be a bit dangerous.
It reminds me a bit of the app PhotoSwap, which some friends of mine have long been addicted to. With that, you send photos from your iPhone to other random users throughout the world. You then get sent a random photo back. FlyChat is a bit like that but with text. But there’s also a game element to it, where you earn points and medal based on how many connections you make.
FlyChat was developed by Project1010, it is available in the App Store for $1.99 today [iTunes Link]. Learn more about it in the video below.
You forgot to link back to TechCrunch 15 times in this article.
It does stimulate the fear of the unknown. I guess not many people will be interested in using it.
Are you trying to be sarcastic or funny with that comment, Mark?
Suddenly, at 3 am a hideously deformed hand (is it HUMAN?) grasps your mouth and quells all efeects of your breathless terror as
THE
KNIFE
SLIPS
DEEP*
can we get a blackberry version?….i mean, yeah that’s super creepy
If they want people to use this, it should be free for at least the first few days.
I was impressed up until they said medals based on amount of friends, that’s just silly.
oh man… this is got to be the funniest promo vid I’ve seen in a while… LMAO!
Location-based social networks are a neat idea, but the ones I’ve seen tend to be:
– desolate, or
– filled with horny high school dropouts
If it was targeted, perhaps towards travelers, it could be neat.
For the record, my mom never taught me to avoid strangers – just not to get in their vans.
and no direct link to FlyChat in the article …
That sounds a litte creepy indeed. it’s like a message in a bottle: only desperate people would use it.
in other news, anybody interested in some beta testing for http://10things.me ?
I heard about something somewhat similar in Japan several years back, but it was a social networking/dating site using GPS connected to your profile. The phone would beep if someone with a similar profile was nearby, allowing you the option to chat with them and meet up.
I remember that as well…Any news? Is it still alive?
I’ve heard of this concept before and they have an iPhone app as well.
http://omegle.com/
credit to xkcd http://blag.xkc...9/04/03/omegle/
Omegle sounds better and much safer to me. I like the fact that it is totally random and you are addressed as a STRANGER.
Thanks for the comment.
The application you are talking about is much different and very much simplified compared to FlyChat.
With FlyChat, you can have multiple conversations, have an Inbox with all the messages/threads etc. , you can choose Themes like (Autos, Shopping, Dating etc.) and Networks (City/Country/School/Work) ,and you can become Friends with others, have a Profile page and Wall just like in Facebook.
Spoken like a true FlyChat employee.
As well as just an honest guy
I definitely see the FlyChat is much more complex than Omegle is, but it’s definitely the same concept elaborated on which what I was pointing out. It’ll be interesting to see how it’s received by giving away personal information to a stranger over an anonymous conversation. I’d suggest creating either a free version of the app (limited features) or a promotional free period to get going otherwise for a person like me I’d be a tough sell.
I’d rather have a purposeful network like that of ardvark. but will have to wait for ‘em to come up with an iPhone app.
Ehhh, interesting concept but except for creepers, who’s going to continually use this http://bit.ly/lwpBi
How is this any different from Distant Shore.. which has been available on the iphone for months.
Thanks for the comment.
The idea to send a message to a random person is the same. But it stops there. One is a Social Network , the other is a Chat system where you can’t keep track of your chats so basically Shore is like Yahoo messenger and FlyChat is like Facebook (just for comparison purposes).
i don’t know. I must be missing something. Do people with thousands of followers on Twitter really know them from a previous online or real world? Fly chat seems like twitter search by location.
Occasion2B
An app that allows you meet people you haven’t met before? No! We can’t have that! That’s creepy/dangerous/wrong/lame, right? We must all sit in our pre-existing social networks and never branch out! Hurry, everyone to your virtual bomb shelters and lock the doors after you.
so I need to pay to make new friends. it’s like highschool all over again.
Did Your Mom Tell You Not To Talk To Strangers? Don’t Show Her FlyChat.
Stop Capitalizing Complete Sentences That End In Full Stops, Question Marks and Other Forms Of Punctuation. It Looks Ridiculous. If I Started Writing All Of My Comments And Post Titles This Way Everyone Would Point and Laugh. There Is A Good Reason For That.
I like the concept of introducing you to other folks you don’t know.
But, I gotta be honest. I hate the fly theme.
Anyone else think people are going to abuse this as an online dating service…?
I bet that site’s full of pedos waiting for tween “flies”
That was funny..LOL
huh that’s kinda neat actually. I bet if they found a good target demo and made the app free it would get rolling.
Its funny how so many think new is weird. like 1980 a personal computer? 2000 a social network? 1999 an ipod? 1997 a search engine? whoa weird….hella creepy. Then 4 years from now you can’t get an interview the CEO and you keep writing articles about it all up on its nuts….don’t worry MG old guys catch on later welcome to the world of being an old guy
This reminds me of good old Gooey:
http://www.free...ents/Gooey.html
“Gooey 2.0 is a communication tool that allows people who are simultaneously browsing the same Web site to chat with each other. ”
I remember using it way back; I was at a site downloading (windows update, I think) and the chat window popped up. Had a nice chat with someone from Vladisvostok all about our computers and where we lived and such.
This seems creepy…
Perfect for the person whose friends have stopped following him on Twitter because of the 40 completely inane posts about the minutiae of his life that he posts daily…
I know of a solution call ConnectionsAD that does few thinks in a really cool way.