FAQ for Twitter Demetricator

Q: Which browsers are supported? Can I use Twitter Demetricator on my phone?

A: I support Chrome and Firefox natively with extensions/add-ons. All other browsers (Safari, Opera, Edge) are supported with Tampermonkey. As for mobile, currently only Firefox on Android is supported, but check back for updates on iOS as I’m looking into it.

Q: Does Twitter Demetricator work with TweetDeck?

A: Yes, as long as you use the browser-based version accessible from https://tweetdeck.twitter.com.

Q: Can I temporarily show the metrics if I want to?

A: Yes. You can toggle metric hiding on/off by adjusting the extension’s options. In Chrome or Firefox, click the ‘#td’ extension icon and then click the Hide the Metrics? toggle. In any other browser using Tampermonkey (e.g. Firefox, Safari, Edge), you can use Ctrl-D to toggle the metrics on/off. You can also disable or uninstall the extension if you want the metrics back for good (see below).

Q: What happened to the times on each tweet?

A: Relative age counts, such as 37m, 2h, or, on TweetDeck, 4d, are metrics. Therefore, they are removed. Timestamps such as 3:43am – 21 Feb 2018 are left intact.

Q: Without the numbers, how can I see if I have likes, retweets, comments, or notifications?

A: Every tweet that has a like, retweet, or comment will indicate as such with a small dot to the upper right of the relevant icon. The same is true for the Notifications and Messages at the top of the page.

Q: What about software updates?

A: Users of Chrome will get my updates automatically within 5 hours of posting them. I believe Firefox can take up to 24 hours for automatic updates. On Tampermonkey, you may need to set Script Update under Settings to something other than ‘never’ — (e.g. try Every Day).

Q: When I install Twitter Demetricator on Chrome/Firefox or using Tampermonkey, it says it can “modify my data” on Twitter and “read my browsing history.” What’s up with that?

A: In order for the Twitter Demetricator extension to access the code that makes up the page you see as Twitter, it needs those permissions. All it does with what it “sees” is search through the page’s code, looking for metrics so it can hide them for you. Nothing is saved, stored, or sent. Nothing is changed on https://twitter.com/. Your browsing history is *not* read! I care about privacy; Twitter Demetricator does not violate it. You can look at the source code if you like (it’s open source and online). If you have concerns, let me know.

Q: How do I remove Twitter Demetricator?

A: In Chrome or Firefox, right-click the extension’s icon (“#td”) to the right of the location bar and select ‘Remove from Chrome’ or ‘Remove Extension.’ In other browsers when using the Tampermonkey extension, click its icon, select Dashboard, find Twitter Demetricator in the list, and click the trash icon at the far right under ‘actions’.

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