Twitter Makes It Easier To Follow Conversations On The Web

By @TheMarkDalton.

Twitter has just made it a lot easier to follow conversations on its website. Clicking a tweet will now open it as a separate window within the timeline. The window will appear for any tweet you click on and will also surface replies to that tweet in the same window. Previously it would simply drop down in the timeline to show some replies and then you would have to click to read more replies if it is a busy conversation.

At the moment the update is only applied to tweets on the website. Apps on mobile have not been changed and it is unclear if they will be changed in the future. Twitter says that it will make it easier for people to follow conversations without losing their place.

This has been one of the criticisms that the social network has had as newcomers to the platform have found it to be one of the more confusing aspects of the site. Like I pointed out yesterday, Twitter needs to be addressing these concerns in order to try and keep Wall Street on side, so it is good to see them indeed making necessary changes.

New on https://t.co/zDdcbPvEwm: entire Tweet conversations pop out with a single click––no more losing your place! pic.twitter.com/RJq8dZIMKh

— Twitter Support (@Support) February 2, 2016

Predictably, as with any kind of change to Twitter, people started complaining.

A TERRIBLE idea, implemented terribly.

THANKS, @Support!@ComradeArthur https://t.co/jm9UjgP8Z8

— Daddy Warpig (@Daddy_Warpig) February 2, 2016

seriously @Support I feel so betrayed rn. I think this is the worst thing you've done to me so far

— Snow Wight (@crimefish) February 2, 2016

@Support THIS SUCKS! I mean come on! If it ain't broke DON'T FIX IT!

— Tom Francois (@Tom_Francois) February 3, 2016

As ever, people will get over it. There was complaints when they introduced lines in the mobile apps to follow conversations, complaints when the backgrounds were removed, complaints when stars changed to hearts…Twitter will face complaints about the new conversation pop out and then people will move on.

The simple fact of the matter is that Twitter needs to appeal to a larger audience, something I keep pointing out. A complaint of people who are new to Twitter or who have tried out Twitter and are not part of the hardcore fans is that they find conversations hard to follow in the old format. Sure, not everyone is going to like a pop out but it addresses the issue of confusion and for Twitter, addressing these problems is more important now than ever.