Sloane Crosley has written an essay for the Village Voice: “With bad manners just a ‘send’ button away, we need some rules. Call it technetiquette.” I’ll leave the odd coinage of technetiquette aside. (Google actually shows a Michael Finley using the term in 1997.) Instead, I’m happy to focus on her number one complaint: Evite.
Ah, the Starbucks of the Internet. The illusion of choice, made to order. Since I've never known anyone who has wholesomely selected a "Girl's Night In" or "Super Bowl" template (perhaps I simply need new friends), Evite as I know it has always been a bit of a nuisance. The following guidelines might get me dropped from the guest lists of future soirees, but if it means no more clip-art martini glasses, I'll take the risk. ... Because Evite is a public forum in a private space, I am still working on reminding myself I don't actually have to read the responses. There's nothing more irritating than a private joke played out among a small segment of the invitees. Tina: "I'll be there . . . as long as I can touch Bob's pineapple." Jeff: "Happy birthday man, even though we all know your pineapple has been canned since Atlantic City."I can take or leave the rest of this article, but it makes me very happy to know that others find Evite as deeply irritating as I do. Sloane even recommends using the Hide Guests ability if people insist on using it! This and her other complaints echo the small rant I have been giving about Evite for a few months now. The phrase "Evite is a public forum in a private space" pretty much cuts to the heart of the problem with the tool. It unnecessarily mixes up private and public spheres and like the worst of the so-called "social software" blurs and solidifies social relationships in awkward ways. Telling a friend you are coming to their party should not be a public performance. Read the entire article.
