Ourglass

Share your day with your 12 closest friends.

1 follower

Share your day with your 12 closest friends.

1 follower

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Launch tags:iOS•Tech

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Promoted

As I talk to way more than 12 on FB weekly I'm just curious why 12? why any specific number? Maybe any number with the factor of 4 might give a little play room?

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11yr ago

ntwrk

@philipkushmaro I'll let the Maker chime in here but there's quite a bit of research around 12 (or so) being the maximum number of people you can be *very* close with. This is based on evolutionary psychology where 12 (or so) was the average size of our nomadic tribes.

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11yr ago

@joshuapinter I love tid-bits of info like that. Thanks Josh. 12 it is ;)

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11yr ago

Ourglass

Maker

@philipkushmaro Here's a bit of background: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Du... Digging in, a person's closest circle is around 5 people; the next layer is 15. 150 is the maximum of relationships a person can handle. Naturally there is variation among people. Since we really want to create a safe spot where people can be themselves without hunting likes, we're keeping it pretty tight. The number 12 came out as a good limit in our betas (and it fit the UI :)

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11yr ago

Spreedly

I love this concept, though I tend to have several small groups of friends that I interact with frequently, but in a very separate and different way. Is there any thought to supporting multiple groups?

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11yr ago

Ourglass

Maker

@rwdaigle yup - we're absolutely thinking about that! just wanted to keep everything super simple to start - just one inner circle of the people you are closest too.

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11yr ago

Spreedly

@ericladams Great to hear, thanks! You know users, always asking for more...

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11yr ago

Meddler

I think 12 is still a big number. I have 200+ Facebook friends. I talk to 5 max, on a regular basis. "You can count your true friends on one hand". But i don't know if groups is a good idea... Look at.. (cough) Google plus (cough)

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11yr ago

Ourglass

Maker

@tsunaze The app is plenty cool with less than 12 people as well; i only have 8 :) The point of the upper bound is to avoid the generally indiscriminate friending (and ensuing popularity contest) that tends to take place in social media. I love Facebook, instagram, etc. but they've fundamentally geared themselves towards a really wide social graph. As a result people can keep up with the Kardashians, connect with people they met 4 years ago, virtually watch the sunrise from a hot air balloon in Cappadocia .... But not see what their best friends are up to. People become understandably restrained about what they're sharing when hundreds, or thousands, of people are watching, counting the number of likes... So we built a little safe zone to share what you're really up to with the people who really care :)

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11yr ago

Isn't this basically what Snapchat's My Story feature is for? And I don't think Snapchat has reached Facebook-level bloat (i.e. "I have too many people on here to be myself so I need a new app for that") just yet... Saving the stories is a differentiator but I'm not sure it's enough to take on such a big player. Plus, SC is more flexible and doesn't force you to have 12. Maybe you guys are targeting a different audience though, I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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11yr ago

Oklahoma Smokes

Looks beautifully made! One suggestion -- whatever the number, 12 / 5 / 3, I think is still a high barrier for adoption. If I get on, I'd love the ability to select my group of X members and have it text them my post on Ourglass. It's a great way of giving me the utility of the app without having to convince my friends to join the service. Eventually those texts would lead to my friends converting!

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11yr ago

Ourglass

Maker

@shwinnabego thanks! it took quite a few trials to arrive at this app. And your idea is an excellent one! I think we'll have to add that very shortly..

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11yr ago

Last question I promise... Are you thinking of an android app?

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11yr ago

Ourglass

Maker

@philipkushmaro absolutely - very high on our list. we just need to thoroughly demonstrate demand for the concept on one platform (iOS, in this case) before adding android.

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11yr ago

Shifu

How did you come with the number 12?

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11yr ago

Camera Rollette

Maker

@89shruti Here's a bit of background: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Du... Research suggests, a person's closest friends/family are around 5 people; the next layer is 15. 150 is the maximum of relationships a person can handle. Naturally there is variation among people. Since we really want to create a safe spot where people can be themselves without competing for likes or followers, we're keeping it pretty tight. The number 12 came out as a good limit in our betas (and it fit the UI :)

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11yr ago

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