Retro

I tried to get into Glass, but it didn’t stick for me. It’s partially because I don’t have many friends on it, and the fact that it’s paid-only means I probably never will. But also because it seems like the community spirit there is: only post really excellent photos. That’s neat but that makes it more like a portfolio than a photo-based social network.

Another new-ish photo-sharing social network-ish app: Retro. I can’t say 100% if it’ll stick with me, but so far it has for about 3 months.

I like it because it encourages you to post every day. It’s not terribly obnoxious about it, but it tells you when your friends do (unless you turn that off) and has this mechanism where you can’t see your friends posts unless you post.

Retro is a social app that feels like a joy, not a habit.

That’s the first sentence of their app description, and that part is kinda bullshit. I mean the two mechanics I just mentioned are specially designed to push habit-forming.

But that aside, I do like the app. The structure of it lends itself to more of a life-journal than any other photo app I’ve seen.

I wish there was a web app, but I do like that it’s very private. Nobody is looking at these photos that you don’t approve. My wife and I don’t generally post public photos of our kid, but I’ll post one here occasionally because the only people that can see it are real-life buds where that’s fine or friends I trust. I only have a few friends on here at all, which is partially why I mention it because it would be more fun to have a few more.