Feature Requests: The Twitter Edit Button

Almost every week I will see at least one tweet with someone requesting or insisting that Twitter introduce an “edit” button. Sometimes even creating a lot of discussion and debate!

A lot of time it's frustrations about typing errors, perhaps adding a wrong web link or forgetting to include some info.?Some even feel they have to delete the tweet and then tweet it again - and an edit button could make life easier.

Lots of ideas for implementing an edit button are floated around as well - allowing viewing of edit history, adding a time/character limit, etc.

It's possibly one of the most requested features for a piece of software or website I've ever come across.

While I'm NOT involved with the development of Twitter, and don't have access to their business decisions (and a lot of this article is based on speculation, as a business owner and software developer) - I can understand why they may not want to implement this.

Some of the reasons why Twitter may not wish to add an edit button...

• An edit button isn't part of their vision for Twitter.
• Tweets/posts in Twitter by their very nature are shared much more often then on Facebook, etc. - so more risk of an edited tweet losing their original meaning after being shared.
• After someone has retweeted a tweet, the original tweet could be edited to lose their original meaning - also damaging the reputation of anyone who retweets. Yes there could be options to view an edit history - however people don't often see or click these - especially if they see something that has offended them!
• As tweets are short and simple, most people may not be bothered by typing errors anyway (or made deliberate grammatical errors to make a tweet fit within 250 characters).
• Imagine if politicians (including those recently banned from Twitter) had access to an edit button!
• May be complicated to implement (I go into more detail on this below).
• Time consuming to implement - especially when considering other factors listed here.
• Way tweets are read, seen, etc. different compared to Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.
• Already workarounds for reasons for adding an edit button. For example, adding any extra or missing info in a thread or quote tweet.
• Posts are much shorter compared to Facebook - where it may be more appropriate to edit a longer post.
• Reporting tweets may also need to be considered. What happens when someone reports a tweet, the tweet is then edited to not be offensive, etc.? New rules would need to be introduced (including legal advice, costs, training, etc.) to take this into consideration.
• Lots of people may seem to say they want this feature - however the amount of users requesting this compared to the amount of overall users may be much different (Twitter is not always an accurate depiction of public opinion).
• Just not in their plans, goals or roadmap.
• Other attempts at adding features found in other social media websites (e.g. Fleets) haven't really worked as well as hoped.
• Twitter may just enjoy all the “edit button” discussions, tweets, demands and debate - after all people are using Twitter to talk about Twitter!

There is also the practical side of things.?Adding a new feature to Twitter, or any other website or piece of software, is much more then writing “a few lines of code”.?For example...

• Not as quick and easy to implement as many believe.
• Changes to the database where tweets are stored.
• Server capacity - imagine every tweet that has ever existed, and multiplying that for edit history, etc.
• Testing it all, making sure it works on different systems, phones, web browsers, making sure it doesn't result in data loss, etc.
• Updating documentation and help.
• Validating any user input when editing tweets - e.g. ensuring character limit, etc.
• Adding new options to allow for editing - including designing the layout, etc.
• Designing and planning.
• Rolling out any new additions to any beta testers.
• Licensing of any third party code and components that may possibly be used.
• Compatibility with older apps, third party tools, etc.

Yes, Facebook has an edit button, allows people to view edit history, etc. - however Twitter is not Facebook (no matter how much they attempt to be - and their recent discontinuing of Fleets proves why that is not always a good idea).

Personally, I would prefer Twitter (and other services) to fix bugs in their existing features, rather then adding new features all the time.

Every time I make a change to one of my products, and add something new - it can be a bit daunting - making sure it doesn't break any user data - now imagine what that would be like for something as big as Twitter!

This is probably one of the best examples of not having to (or feeling obliged) to implement a feature request - no matter how many people seem to be demanding it.

And if you are creating your own products or services - and don't want to add something that has been requested - remember that Twitter have refused to add an edit button for years! If something doesn't meet your vision or goal, don't feel that you have to include it.

If you'd like to learn more about the business decisions and what is involved in putting together, creating and releasing a software product - you may want to check out my book.

No jargon, no coding - available to order on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08C8R9R9W