How to share content to social networks

Question

I'm confused about the sharing model in Metro apps. We are trying to follow Windows design approach and decided to investigate the Share charm.

This article describes how to share content between apps. But we would like to allow user to share to Twitter and Facebook, and if those apps are not installed in the system, this functionality won't be available.

So the question is on more on conceptual level: if we provide possibility to share to social networks, do we need to implement UI and logic inside our app and forget about the Share charm?

Answer 1

You are correct that the Share charm only enables your application to share data with other applications and if those applications aren't installed sharing to those networks may not be possible. Keep in mind that other "unofficial" applications may be installed that can accomplish the same thing. FlipToast is one example.

If sharing to Twitter and Facebook specifically are important aspects of your application, at least in the SDK for Release Preview you would need to implement that logic for yourself.

Answer 2

You say:

But we would like to allow user to share to Twitter and Facebook

The question isn't what you would like, at least not in the context of a Windows Store app. It's about what the user would like to do, and if the user wishes to share via Twitter or Facebook, there will be plenty of apps for them to install that make this possible.

As a developer of apps for Windows 8, your goal should be to provide the information you want your app to share, and let the user decide where that information is shared.

You can improve the user's experience by including multiple formats (plain text, HTML, images, thumbnails, etc.) to ensure that no matter which format is preferred by the app that implements the Share target contract, you've got it covered.

Adding your own distinct functionality for sharing to Twitter and Facebook may seem like a good idea in the short term, but what happens when the next great social media network arises, and Twitter/Facebook start to fade? Are you going to add that functionality to your app, too?

Meanwhile, users who aren't interested in sharing will have extra stuff in your app that provides them no benefit.

Give the Share contract a try...IMO, it provides a great way to make it easy for your users to share with all kinds of apps and social networks, even those that have yet to be created.