

A design critique of Svbtle - youssefsarhan
http://sefsar.com/a-design-critique-of-svbtle

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mnicole
My problem with the kudos button is I had no idea the first time I was doing
it that I was rating something. Secondly, it's at the top of a post so in
order to validate it - presumably _after_ reading it - I need to scroll back
up and keep my mouse over it. I went to hover over it again to try to take my
vote back, but no dice. I generally love Dustin's style and his writing on
design, but I don't find Svbtle as an interface to be very refreshing or UX-
friendly. I wasn't sure if I could legitimately base the weight of the article
on the kudos number or just assume people thought it was cute to interact
with.

As an aside, even though I had seen that Svbtle was a network some time ago,
every time I come across a blog in its style I just assume it is some
Wordpress theme. I sort of wish there was a better callout than at the bottom
left to highlight everyone in the network.

I guess you could say Svbtle is sometimes _too_ subtle. :)

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michaelbuckbee
One of the social software design patterns in place (on HN, StackOverflow and
elsewhere) is that there is a higher bar for negative feedback than positive.

I see the existence of the kudos button in this same light: random, transient
visitors can either leave or they can offer a small token of respect and
appreciation for the given Svbtle article.

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benjaminlotan
after reading a nice post. i want some nice simple way to tell you i enjoyed
reading and appreciate it... i'm down with kudos.

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youssefsarhan
I agree with the sentiment, however, I feel the Kudos button just can't
communicate that. If you had given me a Kudos I wouldn't have known it was
from you, I wouldn't have known what the intent was and it would just be
another number. What's the difference between 23 Kudos and 24 Kudos? But the
difference between 23 comments and 24, well, that could be life changing.

You comment here is a perfect example of this.

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dcurtis
What about the hundeds of people who may have liked your article, but didn't
leave a comment? Aren't they, in aggregate, worth way more than a single
comment?

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youssefsarhan
I understand your intent, but it reminds me a little of Ford's "... any colour
so long as it is black" remark. The kudos button only caters to a single form
of opinion, and at that it's a little vague. I appreciate the effort at
simplifying the gauge of sentiment, that should be continued, however I'm
weary of loosing out on the nuances of personal interaction. This discussion
we're having here is a good example of that.

I think the Kudos button is an interesting idea, but I'm not sure it's the
right one. Something a little more malleable, something that facilitates a
broader spectrum of opinion while maintaining simplicity would be better, I
feel.

What do you think?

