Comments on: OpenID is too complicated http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/ Neil on Web technology, business, design, and development... Thu, 21 Aug 2008 06:35:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.3 By: The Identity Corner » The problem(s) with OpenID http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-519 The Identity Corner » The problem(s) with OpenID Wed, 22 Aug 2007 22:31:45 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-519 [...] OpenID suffers from usability problems. Neil Cauldwell in a piece titled “OpenID is too complicated” says: “I can log-in to any OpenID friendly site just by typing in ‘NeilCauldwell.com’. [...] […] OpenID suffers from usability problems. Neil Cauldwell in a piece titled “OpenID is too complicated” says: “I can log-in to any OpenID friendly site just by typing in ‘NeilCauldwell.com’. […]

]]> By: Koesmanto Bong http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-489 Koesmanto Bong Mon, 30 Apr 2007 19:06:31 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-489 Hi Neil, I stumbled upon your blog when I was searching for Facebook and OpenID. Very interesting article. I work for a company called Vidoop and our main technology is called Vidoop Secure which eliminates passwords as it is the weakest link in user authentication. We decided to implement that technology with OpenID and created myVidoop, which is Vidoop's OpenID service. Currently, myVidoop is in its closed beta phase for scalability reasons, but it'd be great to have you as one of our beta testers and get your feedbacks on our OpenID service and the strong user authentication system. Please email me if you're interested in getting some invitation codes. I think myVidoop would be able to solve your question about OpenID's security. best regards, Koesmanto Bong www.vidoop.com Hi Neil,

I stumbled upon your blog when I was searching for Facebook and OpenID. Very interesting article.

I work for a company called Vidoop and our main technology is called Vidoop Secure which eliminates passwords as it is the weakest link in user authentication. We decided to implement that technology with OpenID and created myVidoop, which is Vidoop’s OpenID service.

Currently, myVidoop is in its closed beta phase for scalability reasons, but it’d be great to have you as one of our beta testers and get your feedbacks on our OpenID service and the strong user authentication system.

Please email me if you’re interested in getting some invitation codes. I think myVidoop would be able to solve your question about OpenID’s security.

best regards,
Koesmanto Bong
www.vidoop.com

]]> By: Neil Cauldwell http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-484 Neil Cauldwell Wed, 28 Mar 2007 21:02:11 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-484 You'd be making quite a difference if you could get OpenID working with Facebook. And aren't Twitter releasing an API soon too? Why not give them both a shot?! Web standards bare many resemblences to hardware formats, such as consoles and media players - if you can get a killer application to go with it, it'll pretty much decide the fate of the format. Without the killer application on which to piggy-back, a format just won't sell. Facebook and Twitter could quite easily be the applications to push OpenID to the mainstream. You’d be making quite a difference if you could get OpenID working with Facebook. And aren’t Twitter releasing an API soon too? Why not give them both a shot?!

Web standards bare many resemblences to hardware formats, such as consoles and media players - if you can get a killer application to go with it, it’ll pretty much decide the fate of the format. Without the killer application on which to piggy-back, a format just won’t sell. Facebook and Twitter could quite easily be the applications to push OpenID to the mainstream.

]]> By: Dmitry Shechtman http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-483 Dmitry Shechtman Wed, 28 Mar 2007 16:52:19 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-483 It would be great to see Twitter become an OpenID provider. I think I could use Facebook's API to do it and OpenID this one massive favor... It would be great to see Twitter become an OpenID provider.

I think I could use Facebook’s API to do it and OpenID this one massive favor…

]]> By: Neil Cauldwell http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-470 Neil Cauldwell Mon, 26 Mar 2007 22:05:53 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-470 I'm glad to hear that Ma.gnolia's OpenID implementation sucks; I was expecting so much more from my first OpenID sign-in! As for the killer OpenID app, I was actually thinking that Twitter could have been the one - it even made the Financial Times yesterday. Maybe it's not too late to get OpenID onboard before the mainstream gets hold of it.... I'd love to see Facebook become an OpenID provider, but at the rate it's currently growing, I doubt the CEO Mark Zuckerberg is at all concerned. Facebook has a whole load of buzz surrounding right now, including details of an upcoming interface redesign. Zuckerberg would be doing OpenID one massive favour by integrating it at this stage. I’m glad to hear that Ma.gnolia’s OpenID implementation sucks; I was expecting so much more from my first OpenID sign-in!

As for the killer OpenID app, I was actually thinking that Twitter could have been the one - it even made the Financial Times yesterday. Maybe it’s not too late to get OpenID onboard before the mainstream gets hold of it….

I’d love to see Facebook become an OpenID provider, but at the rate it’s currently growing, I doubt the CEO Mark Zuckerberg is at all concerned. Facebook has a whole load of buzz surrounding right now, including details of an upcoming interface redesign. Zuckerberg would be doing OpenID one massive favour by integrating it at this stage.

]]> By: Dmitry Shechtman http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-469 Dmitry Shechtman Mon, 26 Mar 2007 12:53:07 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-469 This is mostly in reply to your last comment. Ma.gnolia's OpenID implementation sucks. I blogged about it on several occasions. Try this <a href="http://openid.phpbb.cc/" rel="nofollow">seamless registration</a> I've created. Although the WordPress plugin has many problems (I had to disable it on my blog), a page refresh isn't one of them. You type in your comment, you enter your OpenID, you submit. Jyte might be the killer app you're after. As for Facebook, what if it became an OpenID provider? This is mostly in reply to your last comment.

Ma.gnolia’s OpenID implementation sucks. I blogged about it on several occasions. Try this seamless registration I’ve created.

Although the WordPress plugin has many problems (I had to disable it on my blog), a page refresh isn’t one of them. You type in your comment, you enter your OpenID, you submit.

Jyte might be the killer app you’re after.

As for Facebook, what if it became an OpenID provider?

]]> By: Neil Cauldwell http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-468 Neil Cauldwell Sun, 25 Mar 2007 16:28:12 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-468 Thanks Dave. The second point references the need to create a user name on each service you intend to use OpenID with - last time I checked (which happened to be with Magnolia), I still needed to create unique details, i.e. user-name, preferences, and several other specifics that needed to be completed, in order to use a new service. Now, this wasn't really a problem for me, and I understand why it needs to be done, but I know several people for whom it would probably be more trouble than it's worth. I apologise if I've misunderstood this - has the latest specification of OpenID addressed this, therefore putting OpenID's in web app schemas as unique identifiers? I had intended to use the WordPress OpenID plugin, but it feels like overkill when a user has to go through a page refresh just to log-in via OpenID; if they're already on a comments enabled page (such as this one) they can just type a comment and hit submit - and that's without the page refresh. Even if you only need to fill in an OpenID once, I imagine many people would feel they're registering for a service for which they aren't many instant benefits. However, if we were to build in more social features (more images, personal preferences, contacts etc) into OpenID, they would be a much speedier adoption. As it currently stands, we'll probably need another YouTube/MySpace phenomenon, which insists on OpenID from the first registration, before OpenID hits the mainstream. Thanks Dave.

The second point references the need to create a user name on each service you intend to use OpenID with - last time I checked (which happened to be with Magnolia), I still needed to create unique details, i.e. user-name, preferences, and several other specifics that needed to be completed, in order to use a new service. Now, this wasn’t really a problem for me, and I understand why it needs to be done, but I know several people for whom it would probably be more trouble than it’s worth. I apologise if I’ve misunderstood this - has the latest specification of OpenID addressed this, therefore putting OpenID’s in web app schemas as unique identifiers?

I had intended to use the WordPress OpenID plugin, but it feels like overkill when a user has to go through a page refresh just to log-in via OpenID; if they’re already on a comments enabled page (such as this one) they can just type a comment and hit submit - and that’s without the page refresh.

Even if you only need to fill in an OpenID once, I imagine many people would feel they’re registering for a service for which they aren’t many instant benefits. However, if we were to build in more social features (more images, personal preferences, contacts etc) into OpenID, they would be a much speedier adoption. As it currently stands, we’ll probably need another YouTube/MySpace phenomenon, which insists on OpenID from the first registration, before OpenID hits the mainstream.

]]> By: Dave http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-467 Dave Sun, 25 Mar 2007 15:57:23 +0000 http://dotneil.com/2007/03/openid-is-too-complicated/#comment-467 Hi Niel. This is a good write up on a subject I am interested int. Several points to make in response to your post: 1. Your second bullet regarding a double login procedure is directly addressed by the current specification. As designed, you enter information with your service provider and the sign in passes the information from the identify server to the web site. 2. Using your site as an example, it would have been easier for me to enter this comment if you had an openid consumer set up on your site. That way I would have entered only my claimid information above. I'll not argue your point regarding the use of openid on existing sites. If you continue to use the same sites on an ongoing basis then that's ok for you. I believe if you tracked your participation in other sites on an ongoing basis I think you would find out you are subscribing to new sites on a periodic basis. If you're required to enter passwords on any of these sites then you are either a) keeping track of multiple passwords; or b) using the same password on many sites. Both alternatives present risk. Hi Niel. This is a good write up on a subject I am interested int. Several points to make in response to your post:
1. Your second bullet regarding a double login procedure is directly addressed by the current specification. As designed, you enter information with your service provider and the sign in passes the information from the identify server to the web site.
2. Using your site as an example, it would have been easier for me to enter this comment if you had an openid consumer set up on your site. That way I would have entered only my claimid information above.

I’ll not argue your point regarding the use of openid on existing sites. If you continue to use the same sites on an ongoing basis then that’s ok for you. I believe if you tracked your participation in other sites on an ongoing basis I think you would find out you are subscribing to new sites on a periodic basis. If you’re required to enter passwords on any of these sites then you are either a) keeping track of multiple passwords; or b) using the same password on many sites. Both alternatives present risk.

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