@thomasmeagher hey, great question.
So the way we look at it is local communication is really years behind. It's part of our human nature to want to communicate & connect with the people around us but there's no easy, fun solution out there. It blew my mind that nobody has figured this out yet so I figured I'd give it a shot. :)
We're making literally the easiest way to communicate & connect with everyone in your immediate area. This could be conversations happening in your apartment building, dormroom, or even a section of your city. Anyone within the area can hop in and participate in the chat, or just sit back, relax, and benefit from the real-time crowdsourced local updates (events, news, etc.).
We're taking an iterative approach to building out the product so we're letting college students have the first crack at it. For now, we're 100% focused on the college community but who knows, things move quick in this space...
@ajm5338 Awesome, it's interesting that DormChat allows users the option of being anonymous. There are definitely strengths there in building community later on and holding people accountable for what they say. What motivated the optional approach towards anonymity?
The segment-like communication is really interesting too (based on apartment building, dormroom, or city section). Seeing as I'm still in college, I will check it out!
@thomasmeagher we look at it as there are some things that you prefer to share anonymously, and there are some things you prefer to associate with a profile.
For example, if you're in a chatroom dedicated to CS 101 and you have a question you want to ask about the subject matter, being able to ask anonymously might be easier if you're afraid to ask for any number of reasons (embarrassment, etc.). On the flip side, if you're answering that question you're probably proud you know the answer and in which case you'd be happy for that person to know you helped them so you use your profile.
Same conversation. Two identities.
We've also found that this creates much more transparent and honest conversations which is really what we strive for when expanding our community. :)
@ajm5338 Love the "Same conversation. Two identities." Thanks for answering my questions.
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Hunter
A new way to message each other that’s location-based and anonymity-optional — and it’s starting with college students.DormChat gives its messages context — users don’t just share their thoughts with everyone nearby, but instead create chatrooms based around topics and locations (like a dorm). Then anyone within about three miles can read and post in those rooms.
Competes with http://www.yikyakapp.com/
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