An Open Mixx Challenge to Displeased Diggers
March 19, 2008
We have all heard the complaints. The new Digg algorithm sucks, the comments crash Firefox, no transparency, the shouting is undisciplined, etc. There are many active Diggers who have very valid issues with Digg.com at the moment. And I often wonder to myself, "Why are you guys putting up with this?"
So I hand out an open challenge to Diggers who are displeased with the current problems they have with Digg.
Come to Mixx, register, and give it a shot for a few days.
Nobody's saying, "leave Digg completely", or "boycott Digg" or anything of the sort. My suggestion is, instead of concentrating all of your social media energy into Digg, try doing it at Mixx. At the end of the day, what have you got to lose? Nothing! You will get a nice fresh break from Digg, and you will get the new experience of a flourishing social media site.
There was an assessment amongst some trolling commenters at Digg that the recent algorithm changes would only have an effect on the top Digg users. This couldn't be farther from the truth. Great content posted by Diggers of all experiences and backgrounds is now struggling to be promoted to the front page. It is affecting every Digg user who actively submits. Diggers are spamming with shouts more than ever, and begging for diggs via instant messaging and Twitter; which usually is not so bad, but is so amplified now that it is clear it is a symptom of the problem.
At Mixx, this is not the case. The threshold for popular content is not as restrictive as the promotion algorithm of Digg and solid content is consistently on display on the Mixx Popular Page. There is also more of a solid community feel at Mixx than at Digg, which has contributed to more of a less competitive feel. Sharing a story via e-mail (the Mixx version of shouts) is easier to handle and deal with, and very rarely will you be bombarded by anyone via instant messaging or Twitter for a vote on a story.
Tags
Numerous Digg users I have spoken with before I left the site often wondered why Kevin, Jay, and crew never implemented the use of tags at the site. Back then, I could not understand why it was such a big deal, but since becoming a member of Mixx, I have become a tagaholic.
Mixx embraces the use of tags. You can tag your own posts; and add tags to other users' submissions as well. It has made content easier to search for (oh yeah, remember how much the search at Digg sucks? Not the case at Mixx – because you can search by tags) and assists Mixxers in personalizing their experience with the site.
Images Section
Okay, Diggers, you got your Images section. Are you happy as a pig in shit now? Ironically, while you guys were still screaming for the crew behind the scenes to unleash this feature, Mixx deployed a Photo Section upon launch. They already had the goods out there for Mixxers to enjoy and check out.
The point I am trying to make here is that the crew behind the scenes of Mixx are actively working to generate new features to the site way before you would ever see them at Digg. Look at Mixx Groups: they launched with that as well; and since then Kevin Rose has often spoken about the Groups idea eventually coming to Digg. Need I remind you that they've also been saying that the superior comment system has been coming for a long time as well? Speaking of which...
Ssllooww... My Firefox just crashed!
Coding and development at Digg, particularly with regards to the comments section, is really and truly dreadful. Seriously, I can already envision most of you reading this nodding your heads in agreement. How many times have you got script errors from it? How many times has your browser crashed because of it?
While the comments at Mixx are not yet threaded (though they will be in the future), there is no bloat factor. They load cleanly, and they are easier to follow. It is set up to easily reply to comments, or report any asshattery from trolls. It looks and feels fresh. Furthermore, other development at the site is also very clean - such as sharing stories, and in private messaging too (Oh, wait, Digg doesn't have that one yet either!)
People might say, well, what is the advantage of this? Aside from the fact you can have a personal conversation with someone at Mixx; the messaging system provides you with a means by which users can contact you, without you having to give out any email or IM details in public.
Personalization
It is nice that you can add other photos to your Digg profile, and add links to your other social media sites you hang out at, but at the end of the day, that is all there really is to it. As far as content is concerned (and we can all agree that content is king when it comes to social media), you have no personalization at Digg. Digg.com, for all intents and purposes, is supposed to be "one size fits all", but in reality, you know as well as I do that one size NEVER fits all.
Mixx is entirely different; in fact, the personalization factor changed my perception of social media completely. As opposed to just focusing on the front page and upcoming stories, you also have a section called "Your Mixx" that allows you to add tags, users, categories, and groups to it. You can follow subjects you are interested in as it hits Mixx, instead of stumbling across it on the front page.
For example, let's say you are a Star Wars nerd like me. You can search for the tag starwars, and add it to Your Mixx. Now, on the Your Mixx page, you can check out all the latest submissions related to Star Wars. Or perhaps you're just a big geek for films. You can go to the Movies category, and add that to your Mixx. There is a lot more potential with such flexible personalization.
This is a dupe!
I was having a discussion with a friend the other day, and he pointed out to me that a story hit the home page of Digg. It was a news article. But it had been written two years ago; and had been submitted to Digg at least three times previously. True, duplicate content is a challenge for every social media site; but Mixx has developed a concept that has helped alleviate the issue.
Mixx allows members to add related content to submissions. This is particularly handy with developing news (As an example, think back to the news breaking when Heath Ledger passed away, and all the submissions that were floating through social media sites – this tool would have been handy during that time). With Mixx, as updated news comes in, you can add those updates to the very first submission as related content.
Since organizing this new feature, duplicate content has slowed down very significantly. Yes, you will see some dupes slip through the cracks (come on, everyone understands that this one and this one will eternally keep reappearing at social media sites); but using the Related feature has assisted in improving the site. Digg doesn't have this; but Mixx already does.
Too Much Shouting
Notwithstanding the fact you can turn off shouts, or make them private, many people still do not enjoy, and vocally complain about, the Shout feature at Digg. While originally intended as a "MySpace Comments" style tool as well as means by which you could share submissions with others, it turned into a spam vehicle of people begging for diggs. And this behavior has since become amplified since the recent algorithm change.
Mixx has a far superior system for sharing content. To the right of every submission is an "Email this" link. This link enables you to share your submission or somebody else's with a selection of or all of your followers (the Digg jargon is "fans", at Mixx, people following your content are called "followers").
"Whoa, whoa," I hear you say, "I don't want my inbox crammed with shout spam!"
You do not have to let that happen and it won't. You can easily disable email alerts from your account at Mixx if you are not interested in people sharing stories.
Basically, only people you follow can share content with you via this feature. So you can be very selective with who you follow, and receive their shares. This type of system is far more powerful at Mixx than it is at Digg, and much more effective. Mixxers are a lot more comfortable with the Email This feature, than what Diggers are with SHOUTING.
Are you sick of the Ron Paul and Apple Fanboy spam?
You know what I am talking about. I am not necessarily picking on Dr. Paul because I happen to think he is a great guy and all, but you know what Digg is like: an inclination appears, many people go with it, and eventually you’re getting submissions like "Ron Paul Farted!" Followed by "This is why the iPhone rules Part LXXII". Come on. Give me a break.
While it is true that every social media site will suffer from oversaturation of specific content from time to time, it seems to be somewhat limited at Mixx. The only Ron Paul submissions I have come across are valid submissions. There are also a lot of great Apple and Linux submissions as well, that are very valid updates instead of, "This just in, Steve Jobs just picked a booger!" Do not take my word for it, Apple fans, take a look for yourself. Oh and here are some of the Linux submissions.
Groups
Mixx has a feature called Groups, and as soon as they launched with it, the crew behind the scenes at Digg were already drafting press releases how they were going to come up a group feature as well. The only difference is, of course, Mixx already has the goods, and Digg just has the words, "it is coming". Just like that comment system.
Groups basically establish "mini-communities" within the site of Mixx. Let's say you're a photographer, and one of your favorite sites is Flickr. Well, there just so happens to be a group at Mixx called the Best of Flickr. Even though Mixx does have a Photos section, what the mass crowd believes is popular amongst the public photo submissions, may not necessarily be the same content popular among Flickr fans.
Another good example is the Mixx Metal Heads group. Not everyone likes Heavy Metal, so what the mass audience thinks is popular in the public music category may not be what metal heads think is cool. Within groups, you have the chance to zone in on your specific interests with other like minded individuals such as yourself.
A lot of long term Digg users have often (and still do) complain about the lack of transparency at Digg. There are a few things this can refer to, so let me deal with the two that seem to stick out the most: firstly, burying stories; and secondly, communication with the staff.
Burying stories at Digg is anonymous. You can bury whatever the hell you want. There have been rumors of bury brigades at Digg for years now. But it is all hidden. Nobody knows who has buried what, and more importantly, how many buries a story gets.
Mixx features transparent voting. You can vote a story up or down, depending on your preference. You can see who has voted down a story, and quite often they might actually give a reason for it in their comments. Not all content is everyone's cup of tea.
Communication with the staff is another issue. Despite the Digg Revolt of 2008 and the first Digg Town Hall, there is yet to appear any clear and open dialogue between users and staff. Many people who have been banned without reason at Digg have still not received responses to emails. Why the secrecy? Why the lack of transparency?
Mixx staff members have been open with users from Day One. They actually reply to their e-mails (Shock! Horror! Yes, they do – it’s the truth), and listen actively to the feedback (positive and negative) they receive from users.
And despite the "lip service", I doubt you will ever see that level of open communication from Digg.
No Asshats
The trolls and assclowns in the comments over at Digg are a source of frustration for many. What originally founded itself on dry geeky sarcasm has evolved into openly bigoted and offensive behavior on some topics; and generic trolling on others. The comment clowns are ever-present at Digg.
You will not find such asshattery at Mixx. Yes, I'm fully aware, that asshats will come along at some point, as is the case with all internet community sites... however, at Mixx the community is very dedicated and devoted to the site, and so far, any issues that have arisen from comment issues have quite often been resolved very, very quickly.
But again, why should you just take my word for it? See for yourself!
You already know as well as I do that the above complaints and criticisms of Digg are absolutely true. If you love social media, why are you still putting up with it?
So I encourage you... take this open Mixx challenge. Drop Digg for a couple of days, and give Mixx a shot. I assure you, you will not regret it.
There was an assessment amongst some trolling commenters at Digg that the recent algorithm changes would only have an effect on the top Digg users. This couldn't be farther from the truth. Great content posted by Diggers of all experiences and backgrounds is now struggling to be promoted to the front page. It is 
Coding and development at Digg, particularly with regards to 
You have heard the Digg crew make noises about this before in the past, but come on now, in all sincerity: if they have yet managed to fix the comments and the shouts, 
It is nice that you can add other photos to your Digg profile, and add links to your other social media sites you hang out at, but at the end of the day, that is all there really is to it. As far as content is concerned (and we can all agree that content is king when it comes to social media), you have no personalization at Digg. Digg.com, for all intents and purposes, is supposed to be "one size fits all", but in reality, you know as well as I do that 
Notwithstanding the fact you can turn off shouts, or make them private, many people still do not enjoy, and vocally complain about, the Shout feature at Digg. While originally intended as a 
You know what I am talking about. I am not necessarily picking on Dr. Paul because I happen to think 
Mixx has a feature called Groups, and as soon as they launched with it, the crew behind the scenes at Digg were already drafting press releases how they were going to come up a group feature as well. The only difference is, of course, Mixx already has the goods, and Digg just has the words, "it is coming". Just like that comment system.
A lot of long term Digg users have often (and still do) complain about the lack of transparency at Digg. There are a few things this can refer to, so let me deal with the two that seem to stick out the most: firstly, burying stories; and secondly, communication with the staff.
The trolls and assclowns in the comments over at Digg are a source of frustration for many. What originally founded itself on 
