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comment by mk
mk  ·  4256 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: The New Digg
My first impression is that it looks ok. However, I can think of a number of sites that it looks very similar to. If the stories are good, I could see myself browsing it, but it doesn't feel like it is a community site in this form.

IMO the biggest drawback about the columns that we tried here was that they removed a feeling of flow. When a community is contributing, you expect to sense a dynamic that reflects these contributions. Stacking items in columns obscures that dynamic, and reduces the feeling of participation.

The impression that I get here is that I can submit something, but that an editorial decision will determine whether or not it will appear on the front page. That might not be the case, but that is the impression this gives me.





GoatFood  ·  4256 days ago  ·  link  ·  
I agree, I think the fact that their voting algorithm considers facebook and twitter shares also damages the sense of community. Communities derive personality from insular thinking and like mindedness. If you invite the larger internet in unique content tends to get shoved out in favor of what is popular.
mk  ·  4256 days ago  ·  link  ·  
That's true too. The Facebook and Twitter component does dilute the community aspect. I wonder if any of the betaworks team were active Digg users. Maybe they have a different goal for the site altogether.

There seems a strong Pinterest influence to me.

lessismore  ·  4256 days ago  ·  link  ·  
    Communities derive personality from insular thinking and like mindedness.

Yeah, but getting a broader community isn't necessarily a bad thing. When you're only seeing and hearing from like-minded people, it is very easy to be too insular where you're only seeing and hearing things from one side of the spectrum. It is a delicate balance.

GoatFood  ·  4256 days ago  ·  link  ·  
Absolutely, I agree. There's dogma and then there's community. I guess my thinking was more along the lines of 'If I'm already seeing this stuff on facebook and twitter, why come to digg to see it again?'
lessismore  ·  4256 days ago  ·  link  ·  
I don't see any value in Digg the way it is right now.
lessismore  ·  4256 days ago  ·  link  ·  
Digg is no longer Digg. Just like Napter was no longer Napster. I predict that it will go through a few iterations and then be nothing more than a big footnote in the history of Web 2.0.