Just subscribed. Looks like there's some cool stuff coming through. But what really bugs me is that the links in the feed go to undrln.com and not directly to the site that the link's for. Making me click twice is not good. And we all know why they're doing it. Not for the subscriber, that's for sure.
"But what really bugs me is that the links in the feed go to undrln.com and not directly to the site that the link's for. Making me click twice is not good. And we all know why they're doing it. Not for the subscriber, that's for sure."
The feed for HN has two links: one for the site in question, and one for the HN comments. I almost always go for the comments before looking at the site. That, for me, is the real value of HN, and (possibly) for undrln as well.
Agreed--that pisses me off too. That being said, this is only a problem with RSS readers. The site itself links directly to the post.
We are going to fix the RSS component, but chose to hold off on that until we saw how the uptake was. So far it looks promising. Nearly 7,000 uniques on the first day.
As for the clicking twice, there's no ulterior motive there. It’s just a limitation of Drigg that we're going to have to hack around.
Hm yeah. I hear you. Now I feel bad about suggesting an ulterior motive with the rss links - it's just it really strikes a nerve when I see that. Good luck hacking around - and good luck with the site.
Don't worry about it--I can see how one might think that we were just trying to increase clicks. That being said, once we have a moment, we'll certainly be fixing this.
Besides, I expect to be the site's most active user. The last thing I want is to be hampered by extra clicks. :-)
The hardest part about building a successful social news is building the community, good luck. Getting marketing and advertising people to remember u-n-d-r-l-n dot com is going to be an effort in itself.
Really? Have you read Positioning (Ries and Trout). Certainly branding is more than a name, but for marketing you want something that is at least easily transferable by word of mouth, no?
Yup, I've read lots of their stuff (particularly Ries).
Our firm has named a number of companies. In my experience, these are tough projects, as it's difficult to determine which is objective/subjective feedback.
Some of our most successful names were ones that clients hated initially, but later found very usable. Although some are put-off by names that feel different at the outset, once they are spoken a few times these ones often become more memorable.
I like undrln because it’s short, and there’s a bit of a tongue-in-cheek nod to the tools we use every day in it. Seems to be working: http://search.twitter.com/search?q=undrln
I just think they are too many social something sites out there at this time. The trend should slow down a bit to allow users to awake from the ongoing drunk fest of social tools.
To be honest, I don't think it's really a social site. It's far too basic for that. Mostly, it's a place for me (specifically me) to start the day. I love the HN format and visit it every day. That being said, I wanted more content related to design/marketing, given that it's what I do a lot of.
I felt that if I wanted something like this, my peers might also. (So far that theory seems to be holding, but who knows if it will be compelling in a week's time.)
I suppose. The top area is intended to afford fly-out ads at some point. I'm sure that makes you shudder, but I'd be pretty happy if we could eek a couple of bucks out of it. (Heaven knows we're good at making neat things that don't generate any cash.)
As for the email/password thing, we're just trying to manage the spam component. Communities like this can easily get run-over, without introducing a few little obstacles.
