On top of all that, AFAIK the 1500 limit for OAuth is still vaporware at this point, so everybody is capped at 150.
To inform the discussion, I wonder if Twitter could share any figures like what's the actual API use distribution? Like what combination of users/apps hit the cap regularly and cause massive load? If it was an equal distribution (i.e most users/apps are around the same level) that gives them heavy load, then I would see why they need to be careful about raising limits (any increase would bring more fail whales). But I suspect that it's highly asymmetrical... i.e there are very few users/apps who actually cause any meaningful load. Another hunch: desktop apps are negligible and the real load comes from web apps who spider asynchronously 24/7. Should the load be differentiated across client and web apps? Client apps are typically only one user per device at a time, whereas the web app may be spidering on behalf of who knows how many people. On Jan 20, 5:48 pm, Eric Woodward <e...@nambu.com> wrote: > I will come straight to the point: we need to an increase to the API > limit to properly implement Twitter within a desktop client > application given the addition of: 1) three retweets timelines; 2) > checking the account's saved searches; and 3) up to 10-20 Twitter > Lists timelines. > > Twitter Lists alone are causing real problems if a user follows more > than 5 or so. We cant poll Twitter List subscriptions with one API > call that combines them altogether, which we could then split apart > client-side with some attached meta-data. That alone would have been a > big help, and without it we are left polling each List as if it was a > separate timeline, since that is what they are. > > Implementing proper Lists management is a non-starter within this > limit, so is regular confirmation of a relationship between two users > when asked for by the user (on Lists or search results). There is > simply a lot of stuff I cannot do properly that is standard on > twitter.com, all because I am subject to the API limit while > twitter.com is not. Users simply do not understand this distinction in > possibilities. > > I would like to formally ask on behalf of all client developers that > the API limit increase to 250, from 150, for all applications whether > they use OAuth or HTTP Basic Authentication. We are simply not able to > implement Twitter properly within a limit of 150, but dont need a lot > more, only another 100-200 API calls or so. > > If Twitter can even technically contemplate a 10x API limit increase > to 1,500 for OAuth applications, surely an increase to 250 based on > the addition of core features like official retweets and Lists is a > reasonable request. A limit of 150 is simply obsolete, and has been > for a long time. > > I do not want to wait for the UX repairs around OAuth for desktop > applications, and I dont like being forced into OAuth sooner than we > are ready just because we need the extra API hits just to do basic > features properly. And besides, that was announced as two weeks away > three weeks ago. I dont want to wait any longer. I want to properly > implement the basics, like Lists polling, now. > > This is a considered email because I care about the quality of our > Twitter implementation and I care about the Twitter ecosystem. I would > appreciate a considered reply. > > --ejw > > Eric Woodward > Email: e...@nambu.com
