Observable’s raison d’être is to collaborate and share. That’s why I think this strategy is a really bad news for the community. There are several reasons for this.
A creative process is always built in several phases. First, we think. Then we test things. And finally we produce. I’m not sure if these 3 phases should be done in a public way. In any case, forcing people to test things publicly under the eyes of the community is rather likely to prevent creation.
Second, it will discourage beginners. Indeed, it is not easy to write your first lines of code knowing that what you do can be seen by everyone. I would never have started working on Observable if I had to do it publicly. Today, I spend my time convincing colleagues to come and work with me on Observable. But if I explain to them that what they are going to do will be public from the start, they won’t come. No doubt about it.
Finally, the fact that everything is public will be very annoying to see the new interesting productions. Every day, I look at the recent notebooks. If most of these new notebooks are tests or work in progress, it won’t be interesting at all. The interesting stuff will be drowned out.
Proposals:
- Restoring private (or unlisted) notebooks for free users
If no:
- Restoring private (or unlisted) notebooks for free users in a limited number (5/user)
- Separate very clearly the drafts notebooks and the public notebooks. Adda a banner “work in progress” for draft notebooks. Exclude them from the list of “recent notebooks” and “trendings”. Have the possibility to change status.
- Why not add a button [I wish to collaborate / I work alone for the moment] to respect the different phases of the creation. If you check “I work alone for the moment”, the notebook should not be visible to others. If you check “I wish to collaborate”, the notebook could be visible on a new section on the website.
Conclusion
The choice that has just been made is very bad news. For the sake of the community, it can’t stay the way it is.