Being Geek Chic is the yammerings of a Midwestern nerd named Elizabeth Giorgi. My vision impairment is real, which is frustrating because I really would like to see a 3D movie.
Send questions, requests and ideas to [email protected]. Please put your complaints on a napkin and toss it.
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Note
1st November 2011
In Review: The Verge
The internet is abuzz with the launch of The Verge today. A new tech site filled with news, product reviews, message boards and a podcast too.
The site has some interesting new features that other news sites have yet to implement, including a really incredible feature where products mentioned in articles get indexed at the bottom of it for easy access to reviews and information. There’s a lot of promise here.
The Good:
1. Innovative indexing. You know when you read a review or piece of news and you want to get more information on a product, company, etc. Then you realize that Googling around might be the only way. The Verge solves this problem with a new editorial indexing system that gives you a listing of products that were mentioned “In the Article.” I like this for two distinctively different reasons. First, it gives you a snapshot of what was covered as well as a quick look at what was recently reviewed and it’s score. Second, it makes navigating the site easy, easy, easy. They’re going to keep readers in for extended periods of time, which is great for the site and a huge boost in usability for the reader.
2. Zine/blog/news format marriage. I love websites that take on the magazine format, but sometimes that can make it difficult for the reader to prioritize content on the page according to your custom needs. The Verge essentially marries the structure of the magazine format (…think Flipboard), the image heavy, bold headline appeal of blogs and the ability to organize content based on interest from traditional news sites. One look at the photo at left and you can clearly see how these three ideas have married to create an easy to navigate site.
3. Competition. Quite simply, there isn’t enough competition in this market. Wired is great, but it’s the only site that I would describe as maintstream for this market.
The Bad:
1. It appears to be a boy’s club. In Joshua Topolksy’s letter to readers about The Verge, he mentions many great reasons why the site is such a triumph for him and his team. Unfortunately, I googled all the names listed as partners, managers and interns and not one appears to be a woman. In addition, I’ve gone through about 25 articles and haven’t identified one female writer. The perception that the tech industry is a boy’s club just keeps reinforcing itself in situations such as these and it’s really disappointing.
(EDIT: Dan points out in the comments that Joanna Stern is the features editor. Thanks for bringing this to our attention. If anyone else knows of another woman working with The Verge, we’d happily give them credit here.)
Overall, I’m excited to see what comes out of this project. Here’s some recommended reads:
Radar-like sensors bring touch sensitivity to everyday items
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