You're coming from a position that email is good and it's worth configuring it to work well. But I don't particularly like email. I have zero interest in setting up aliases or filters when the problem simply doesn't exist when I use a better tool.

This doesn't make much sense to me. We're talking about functionality (being contacted by companies or automated processes) that doesn't exist at all in Messenger. You can't say it's the better tool in this case when it makes no attempt to compete with that feature.

> You can't say it's the better tool in this case when it makes no attempt to compete with that feature

Sure I can. Something isn't better just because it has more features. Easy ability to be spammed with nothing more than a widely shared string ID is not a positive feature.

Even if I used FB auth to log into all of my various internet accounts, my Messenger still won't get spammed. It's a better tool (at least for me).

My email inbox just annoys me while Messenger is so good I haven't deleted my FB account.

> Something isn't better just because it has more features

You're right, but being able to be spammed with a string ID absolutely is a positive feature. While your inbox may annoy you, I'm sure you also use to sign up for services, get marketing info that you're interested in, get billing notifications, etc. Could Messenger do all that? Yeah potentially, but now you've just moved the spam problem into Messenger. That's why I'm saying Messenger isn't the better tool because it doesn't have spam, it doesn't have spam because it lacks the features that introduce spam.

So your messenger app read your mind?

Pretty sure you create a whitelist on that too, yes?

Of phone numbers, usernames, or …email addresses… depending on what the app uses, that you wish to hear from?

Check out Spike for IOS. I’m not saying you have to USE it, but that it’s a UX problem, not an “email” problem.

It didn't read my mind, it's just that my instant messaging is 0% automated messages and 100% people I know. My email is 98% automated messages from services I signed up for using my email, and 2% my mom.

The configuration is never over with email, because every time I sign up for something, I've got more filters to set up. With instant messaging? There was never a problem to begin with

So you're saying you voluntarily gave out your primary email address and then don't like that they are emailing you? Why give it out in the first place then? It's free to setup a dummy email address for these purposes.

Unless you're complaining about getting reminder emails from upcoming doctor appointments, bills and the like. But my impression was that getting those are a feature...

I could set up multiple accounts. But then I have to check multiple accounts. Either way, I have to go out of my way to make email as pleasant to use as instant messaging already is.

This is definitely a case of "that's just how you use it", as my phone number is relatively accessible and many services have asked for it, so I get plenty of spam straight to my phone via almost every messaging means that can be tied directly to my phone. That means things like whatsapp in addition to plain old SMS.

That’s because email providers have it backwards.

They could deny by default unless the sender is in a contact list.

But I mean the messenger list has to be updated to allow people in every time you meet someone worthy?

You are still doing list management.

> So your messenger app read your mind?

No it just read my pre-existing social network graph. And then very accurately predicts who I might want to add to that graph. But practically speaking it comes out to the same thing - I have never had to create a messaging whitelist.

While email and email tooling is completely ignorant of my multiple social network graphs that are stored in various places on the Internet.