MFT: TXT.fyi platform

More often than not modern applications offer too much besides what they are centred around. This results in watering down of the initial concept, overall frustration and subsequent abandonment of the service. It is painfully obvious within the realm of publishing platforms. They offer so many beautiful things bundled with the possibility of posting whatever you want that the whole "writing and publishing" thing takes a backseat in favor of discreet charms of social buttons which promise "exposure" but mostly for those lucky ones who will catch it up in the endless current of newsfeeds.

That's why something like TXT.fyi feels like a breath of fresh air. It is a minimalist publishing platform made by Rob Beschizza of Boing Boing. With its help you can type whatever you want and then post it instantly. And that is it. It is stripped down to barest bones - there is simply a text box and a publish button. No accounts, no comments, no backtracking editing. You don't even know what else is on the platform. There are also some simple hypertext layouts tricks to make thing a bit nicer but that's it.

After hitting "publish" you get a result and you need to save the link because otherwise it will be lost forever (drama cue) - because there is a script that prevents the link from being indexed by search engines and subsequently showing up in search results. The only thing you can do on TXT.fyi is write and have no second thoughts about anyone's reaction. You just let it go into the wilderness. The very notion of this futile vanity is inspiring. There are no overbearing qualms of gratification, no marmot belching, no choking on the keywords, no playing catch-up with the trends. You are on your own. Just like Thoreau...

It is easy to interpret TXT.fyi is a reaction to overexposure and noisiness of social media and various publishing platforms. They really offer too much and they indeed are way too intrusive into our information perception habits and preferences while offering not much in return aside from abstract "exposure". But eschewing the entire concept sharing might seem counter-productive at first. Why would you want to publish something if you are unable to share it with anybody? But then comes the realization - that kind of "sharing" is not really sharing at all - it is more akin to throwing a stone into the river. There is splash but then things come back to normal. It is true that main purpose of publishing platforms is to provide opportunities to be heard. But nowadays they provide only an illusion of exposure. There is too much information and your contribution to the discourse is often lost and barely noticed.

In case of TXT.fyi you only option is to share your work with somebody manually - by yourself. That kind of pass around is far appreciated and bring far more respectful attention than a simple roll-through. 

And that's why i like it...