Entries written by Susan
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Techmeme founder Gabe Rivera somewhat humorously recounts the events leading to the addition of the site's search tool:
Hours after Techmeme launched in 2005, search uberblogger Danny Sullivan remarked "there's no keyword search facility that I can see. I want that, and soon!" Nobody wants to let Danny down, so I got right to work and 32 months later, a search box now sits atop the site.Well, actually, work on search was rather seriously delayed...Techmeme was focused primarily on surfacing the newsworthy, not providing Yet Another Blog/News Search.
As an increasing number of users became increasingly dependent on Techmeme, one common use case emerged: people wanted simply to recall things they'd seen on the site early.
At TechCrunch, Michael Arrington describes the new search feature:
Results are returned only for items that have appeared as full headlines on Techmeme, in reverse chronological order. Headlines appearing only in "Discussion" are excluded. And basic search only returns results that appear in the title of the item or in the first couple of sentences.There is also an advanced search feature, however, that allows for full text search of the underlying blog post or article. Users can also search just by date, author, source, etc.
With the addition of the search tool, Brad Linder of Download Squad finally sees Techmeme as broadly useful:
...Techmeme has historically done a pretty lousy job of telling you yesterday's big stories. Or last week's. Or last years. Because the site has lacked any sort of a search function...The launch of the search tool actually makes Techmeme a site worth visiting if you're not just trying to figure out which stories Download Squad, TechCrunch, CNET, ReadWriteWeb, and Engadget are covering today.
Stan Schroeder of Mashable decides he doesn't have to visit Technorati anymore:
...Techmeme search effectively kills the last big reason I've had to visit Technorati. Techmeme now has it all. Tracking news on blogs? Check. Following conversations/trackbacks? Check....Top list of blogs, if you care for that sort of thing? Check. And now there's search, which has lately been the only reason why I'd go to Technorati - to quickly search what the blogosphere has been saying about a topic.
And he predicts:
...with Technorati's track record of weird updates or just plain old stagnation, in a year or two it might find itself overrun by Techmeme.
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Yesterday we added Technorati and Alexa data to Louis Gray's FriendFeed list. Here's a roundup of what several bloggers on the list have to say about FriendFeed:
Michael Arrington, TechCrunch.com
FriendFeed "Launches"
Ok, point taken. There are too many activity feed aggregators out there. So now we have FriendFeedFeed, to "Aggregate all your social networking aggregator feeds into one aggregated feed of aggregator activity feeds!" Awesome.
Erick Schonfield, TechCrunch.com (Feb. 25)
FriendFeed Raises $5 Million, Now Open to Everyone
FriendFeed is still very much a work in progress. There is no search box (coming), there is no mobile version (coming), and there is no way to group or organize feeds other than chronologically...Yet there is something pure about FriendFeed that I hope does not get lost as more people (and features) join.
Robert Scoble, Scobleizer
FriendFeed gets interesting
I love my FriendFeed...Why do I love it? It's one place you can find all my stuff and, even, comment on it.
Eric Eldon, VentureBeat (Feb. 25)
FriendFeed, the best software for conversations, raises round and launches publicly
I've been using FriendFeed religiously this year, after reviewing it in detail last month, and I've been consistently impressed.
Dave Winer, Scripting News
Loving My FriendFeed
...it's competitive with things like: Twitter, Facebook, Jaiku and Pownce. And it's simple and minimalist like Twitter, yet it fully embraces everything else out there that has a feed
...
I love to see this stuff finally take root so virally.
Loic Le Meur
Getting a FriendFeed new friend every minute or so!
Do you think FriendFeed is getting traction? Here is mine.
Jeremy Zawodny
FriendFeed Launces, Provides New Lightweight Social Activity. Needs API
FriendFeed is, in a way, attempting to join together the loosely coupled bits of social "exhaust" I produce on the web. And at the same time, they've created another new source of activity that I'd like to pull back onto my own web site. Once the FriendFeed API is out, a whole bunch of interesting stuff is bound to happen.
Brian Solis, bub.licio.us
FriendFeed Appeals to the A-List and the Entire Alphabet-List
The consensus is that FriendFeed is fun and definitely makes it easier and by far, more elegant, as a way of keeping a "pulse" on your network. The one thing that I need though is the ability to link directly to a "reply" option
...
Lifestreams are not going anywhere but the mainstream.
Steven Hodson, WinExtra
Would you hammer a nail with a shovel?
Like anything else it is all in how you used the tools that makes the difference...using FriendFeed means getting involved for a period longer than your coffee break. It means figuring out which of all those friend requests coming in are best suited for making your participation the most effective.
Susan Mernit
FriendFeed and the stalkerati
We're in a world where...practicing transparency sometimes feels like a weird blend of the global village and an endless rout of self promotion. And a bit like stalkerati rule, too. Or, at least that's how felt when I read Louis Gray's post reporting on which A list bloggers are public on friendfeed, allowing others to watch their every click and post on their blogs, tweets, facebook and like 30 other social media apps.
...
On a different note, I was irked that Gray's A list of thirty-plus has just two women; on other hands, it's really a list of bloggers he reads, it's really no big deal
Jason Kaneshiro, Webomatica
Again: Why I Like FriendFeed
So here's why I continue to like FriendFeed:(read the whole post!)
The site is easy to use once set up ...
The comments - which I believe are a killer feature ...
FriendFeed is solid and fast ...
Interesting additional features ...
It's sticky ...
Now what's bad?
Jeremy Toeman, Live Digitally
From Geocities to Friend Feeds: The (de?)evolution of self-expression and stalking on the Internet
I'm still not sure why/if I need FriendFeed...nor if I plan to use it in the future...but at least I'm not judging from afar this time
...
There are times when I feel technology evolution is outpacing humanity's ability to absorb, react, and evolve as a society. We are probably closer to being "one world" than ever before, yet we are also probably closer to being "six billion individuals" than ever before.
Frederic Lardinois, The Last Podcast
How did FriendFeed suddenly become controversial?
The real power of FriendFeed, as Steven Hodson points out in one of his signature cranky rants, is in the discussions it facilitates. It’s about participation, not just passive consumption. It is not just a place where you can find stuff - it’s a place to discuss that stuff with your friends.
Ian Kennedy, everwas (Feb. 27)
Positive Interference
If I'm feeding my updates to a site such as Pulse or FriendFeed, I would rather be able to keep the conversation threads all together on my site or at least tie them together with something like a trackback to pull in threads if the discussion jumps over to another venue. The way Pulse and FriendFeed are built, your readers can never know what additional discussion is taking place which makes it an open loop of dis-jointed conversations that may never come together.
(Note: Ian Kennedy is Product Manager for MyBlogLog, part of Yahoo. As he notes in the post, they are close to releasing a "lifestreaming" feature.)
Corvida, SheGeeks
Louis Gray Is The Culprit
There have been quite a few tweets, discussions, and blog posts about the influx of FriendFeed friend requests and subscriptions, not to mention a host of new users joining the service.
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So now you know who to thank (or blame)...
Here's what the "world's 50 most powerful blogs" thought of the list.
(Update: we accidently published this post before it was complete; here's everything we found.)
4. kottke.org
The world's 50 most powerful blogs
"Powerful" seems to be a word used here for its succinct headline value...that adjective doesn't fit many of the blogs on the list. But The Observer has made an effort to build a wide-ranging list of blogs that you should be reading...it's very nice to be included.
5. dooce
Lemons into lemonade
I know, I know, with great power comes great responsibility, so I'm making the promise to you now that I am going to do everything I possibly can to make sure that bacon is served in more public schools.
6. PerezHilton.com
#6
Perezzers has just been named #6 on the U.K.'s Observer's list of 50 Most Powerful Blogs. We don't like that word - power - but thanks!
17. marbury
marbury power
According to The Observer, marbury is the seventeenth most powerful blog IN THE WORLD. I hope you're cowering. ps I have no idea why they think I'm the 'least likely' to ask if Mitt Romney is getting cuter. It's a perfectly good question to ask. The answer is no. But then, how could he?
19. Basic Thinking Blog (German)
50
21. Tibet Will Be Free
SFT #21 out of "The world's 50 most powerful blogs"
We are grateful and a little shocked, to be honest, but also very proud of the recognition. This is an honor that is shared by everyone out there who has ever posted a photo, sent a video to YouTube, or posted on their Facebook page. This online stuff matters and is noticed, so keep it up!
22. Jezebel
The 'W' In 'Web' Stands For
Women
29. The Cranky Flier
London/Heathrow Gets Ready to Play Musical
Airlines
Turns out that I was voted one of the the world's 50 most powerful blogs by The Observer in the UK. Holy crap! That's kind of scary. But, I'm guessing that means I'll have a bunch of new visitors from that side of the Pond...
33. Crooked Timber
Timber, Bookshelves, World Domination,
Etc.
It seems that everyone else around here is just too quietly dignified to mention that Crooked Timber has been listed as one of the world's fifty most powerful blogs by The Guardian. But not me. So: Woo hoo!
34. Bean Sprouts
Hello Observer Readers
We come in at #34, which is a big thrill, especially so soon after the blog was recognised by Amnesty International. It's all terribly subjective, of course, but it has already brought a lot of extra visitors and links which I always like to see.
35. The Offside
Check out Ronaldo's bubble
butt
In case you missed it yesterday, The Guardian (which is quite legit, believe it or not) listed The Offside as 35th in their list of "The World's 50 Most Powerful Blogs." No, I am not making this up.
39. Samizdata.net
Observing the blogosphere...but through a thick fog
methinks
Such lists are of course highly subjective and whilst I am happy to see Samizdata numbered amongst new media's Golden Horde, there is a howling error, indeed it is a glaring radioactive glow-in-the-dark omission... where the hell is INSTAPUNDIT?
41. The F-Word Blog
50 most powerful
blogs...
44. waiterrant.net
44 Special
I was pleasantly surprised, however, to learn that the Guardian/Observer in the UK named me as 44th in their list of the "The World's 50 Most Powerful Blogs." Rude diners of the world, tremble before my wrath! (Sure.)
45. Hecklerspray
Hecklerspray: The 45th Most Powerful Blog In All The
World
Honestly, we don't think we've ever been so flattered. There are some very good blogs in the list, along with a couple of ropey ones. And - if first is gold and second is silver - then what sort of medal will 45th place get us? One made of milk bottle tops? A discarded condom wrapper? Depleted weapons-grade uranium? Hooray for us!
48. Style Bubble
Observe This
Huffington Post got the number one spot where comments of over 1,000 build up and they talk about things which go way way way over my head... so to have a wee fashion blog even in the list is quite a surprise
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