You might be seeing some strange, questionable Facebook statuses in your news feed today. It sounds sort of like your friend, but something’s just not right. Rest assured, your pal (probably) hasn’t been replaced with a pod person. Instead, they’re having fun with the newest Facebook craze, What Would I Say?
This hilarious new app surveys your recent Facebook updates and compiles a random list of statements that might say more about you, and how you present yourself online, than you might want to admit. You can find out if you’re brave enough to log on and ask: What Would I Say?
Metro spoke with the team of mysterious developers behind your new favorite work distraction, who only go by their first names: Pawel, Vicky, Ugne, Daniel, Harvey, Edward, Alex and Baxter.
How do you all know each other, and how long did WWIS take to create?
We are all Princeton graduate students and friends that teamed up for the Princeton Hackathon, so most of the work was done over one weekend (this weekend, actually). Baxter is a puppy.
Are you affiliated with Facebook or have you been in contact with them?
We chatted with a Facebook rep at the Hackathon, but otherwise we were only in contact when we briefly got shut down. They’ve been very helpful in getting our app working!
Does the app have a greater significance than being fun and funny?
Other than being hilarious, this app hopefully teaches you something about yourself and your friends! But mostly it’s just random and hilarious.
What are a few of the favorites you’ve seen so far (aside from the ones on your website)?
At this point there are too many: All of our friends are posting their favorites, and it’s really the best when you have some insight into what they’re usually like. However, I thought “Winter is confirmed” from [the "Game of Thrones" page] was awesome.
Is the website monetized?
No.
Do you plan to take the concept any further, or will you move on to another project?
We’re working on some improvements and other fun ideas of what we can generate, but we’re not too set on anything yet. Mostly right now we’re trying to get the kinks out of our site.
Why is it so addictive? Do you guys still tool around on it a lot?
It’s popular because it’s so fun to see things you cared enough to post about mashed up in different ways. This also explains why we spend a lot of time on it.
Are these aggregated statuses really a reflection of the user?
We don’t like to get that philosophical. But it is drawing from every word you said that you wanted your friends to see on Facebook. How could it not say something about you?
If robots took over the world and started mimicking people via What Would I Say, would they get away with it (at least on Facebook)?
Probably not. Maybe if we made a better filter for grammar.
Comment with screenshots of your funniest What Would I Say? results, and we’ll add the very best to our slideshow!
The post What Would I Say? Developers talk about their Facebook status mash-up app appeared first on Metro.us.