Summer YC startup launches: Versionate's Wiki End Run Around Google Docs

Re:Summer YC startup launches: Versionate's Wiki End Run Aro... by Alex3917 on Wednesday July 11, 2007 @07:16PM (#33752)

There seems to be this new crop of ridiculously overdesigned websites recently. Versionate, Docstoc, iscrybe, etc. I'm not sure how I feel about it.

I was reading Viktor Frankel's holocaust memoir recently. He makes the claim that people find meaning in their lives through meeting people, going places, doing work, and through unavoidable suffering.

I think he's right. And sometimes I think that web designers would do well to add a little unavoidable suffering.

Some of these new websites seem user centric to the point of being obsequious. It's kind of like when a guy is following around a girl and constantly doing nice things for her. You'd think it would be cool, but it gets kind of creepy after a while.

The concept is solid and the technology is brilliant. It just makes me a little uncomfortable for some reason.

/least useful criticism ever :-)

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Re:Summer YC startup launches: Versionate's Wiki End Run Aro... by pg on Wednesday July 11, 2007 @09:23PM (#33769)

Suffering may (or may not) be good for people, but that doesn't mean it's the job of designers to supply it. Especially not the designers of something like Versionate. Versionate is a tool, and tools should be self-effacing.

Plus, most people are already way over their lifetime allowance for software-induced suffering.

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Re:Summer YC startup launches: Versionate's Wiki End Run Aro... by mynameishere on Thursday July 12, 2007 @12:48AM (#33782)

meeting people, going places, doing work, and through unavoidable suffering

Rather odd summary of the holocaust experience. I'm really not sure if it's a good model for web design though.

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Re:Summer YC startup launches: Versionate's Wiki End Run Aro... by marcury on Thursday July 12, 2007 @03:07AM (#33800)

indeed. you have absolutely no argument whatsoever. please take the psuedo-intellectual crap back to reddit.

please cease (ooh, rhyme) the horrible analogies and abstractions as well.

p.s. how on earth does a document management app make you feel uncomfortable? please step outside of your sheltered world and take a stroll

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Re:Summer YC startup launches: Versionate's Wiki End Run Aro... by natrius on Thursday July 12, 2007 @03:18AM (#33804)

You seem to have noticed that discussions are far better on news.yc than they are on reddit, but you clearly haven't figured out why. Most people who decide to comment make sure their comments actually add to the discussion, which the grandparent poster did, even if you disagree with him. You, however, didn't.

Don't leave, just post smarter.

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Re:Summer YC startup launches: Versionate's Wiki End Run Aro... by pg on Thursday July 12, 2007 @09:34AM (#33831)

This is exactly the kind of comment that drags down reddit (and digg and slashdot). If you disagree with something, refute it instead of just calling names.

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