Slack: productivity and collaboration tool, or platform for procrastination, in-jokes and GIFs? We couldn’t possibly say here at Packt.
For most of us, the only thing worse than wasting time on Slack is looking like you’re never on Slack at all. While you’d like to tell people it’s because you’re busy, you can see your colleagues eyeing you with suspicion, convinced that if you’re not procrastinating in the same manner they are, you really can’t be doing anything at all.
Luckily, someone has invented a tool for dealing with exactly this problem.
Take a bow Will Leinweber (@leinweber) – you have made something to make us look busy. Or, at the very least thoughtful and ready to contribute to the channel chat at any moment.
I made a VGP (very good program) that makes it so it looks like I’m typing on slack whenever anyone else is typing, and stops when they stop.
Everyone loves it so far and doesn’t find it annoying at all!https://t.co/W8e2EKuVXX pic.twitter.com/ZZd01GxYqg
— will leinweber (@leinweber) April 25, 2018
Will has put the project on GitHub. You can find it here.
The only disappointment with the tool is that Will didn’t include the additional feature that “asks other people what their typing whenever they’re typing.” The results were pretty hilarious, and likely too distracting for anyone to do any work at all…
I decided not to go with the bonus VGF (very good feature) that asks what people are typing whenever they’re typing… pic.twitter.com/yOrbTlOYvz
— will leinweber (@leinweber) April 25, 2018
Needless to say, there was a pretty strong reaction to Will’s program.
Genius. Evil genius.
— Danyn (@snail_5) April 25, 2018
This is a crime. You did a crime.
— Little Mx. Surly (@LittleMxSurly) April 26, 2018
Why do you need a program to do this though? It happens already anyway… 😂
— Code The Web (@CodeTheWebBlog) April 27, 2018
Once we thought that code could save the world; today we’ve discovered that it can do even better
— shandrew (@shandrew) April 26, 2018
Truly, software is being used for incredible things in 2018. These are the projects we need if we’re to survive a hostile and unforgiving future, forever typing into the abyss at each other, and doomed to search out reaction GIFs to every rude email and hostile expression someone sends your way.
What other novelty software projects have you seen recently? Let us know in the comments, and we’ll do some investigative work*
*Have a look on Twitter.
