Google Sidewiki: Good or Bad? A personal review
Google just recently launched its new “innovative” utility called Sidewiki – a “browser sidebar that lets you contribute and read information alongside any web page.”
People with Google accounts and Google Toolbar installed can now go to any website – and write comments or views about the website. In short, anyone can now add any information on any website that they visit.
Entries written in Sidewiki are also posted in Google profiles, and can be passed on to Twitter, Facebook and even on blog sidebar widgets.
Many welcome this innovation with open arms – without any trace of doubt and hesitation, after all “if it’s from Google, it must be good!“
However I view this “revolutionary” tool unnecessary, redundant and reduces a website’s value by taking away the control from webmasters as to who can add information to their sites.
Sidewiki takes away the interactivity from blogs, where comments were designed to be written and submitted in the Comments section.
Not to mention that Sidewiki is a potential new breeding ground for spammers and vandals.
And why would someone allow total strangers to write something about his website and let the world read it without the capability to edit or moderate it?
If you want to share information regarding your website, is the “About” page not the right place to put it? If you want people to share their views and comments regarding a post or an article, why not let them use the Comment forms?
And if you want people to freely write something or add information on certain topics or about your Website or Blog in general, then why not put a “Wiki” section?
I personally believe Google has the best intentions when it designed Sidewiki, however this is also a classic example that not all bright ideas are useful.
So what to expect to see in your Sidewiki? Spams, vandals and ads?
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Google Sidewiki: Good or Bad? A personal review | Bloggista.com…
Google just recently launched its new innovative utility called Sidewiki – a browser sidebar that lets you contribute and read information alongside any web page….
Can’t understand the usefulness of a Google Sidewiki. As a blogger, I can’t think of a reason why I’d prefer it over the regular comment section. That’s where the real conversation is taking place. That’s where I’d likely get a reply from the author which is the point of conversation, right?
It’s an added strain for a user if he bothers with it. And for the blog owner, too. More things to monitor. Oh well, what’s another place to put on one’s watch list, right? Ahahaha. Ay sus….
As I understand it, there’s a trend of conversations being weaned away from blogs. We can’t prevent that – people are going to talk about you and your blog in the social media anyway. Facebook, Twitter, FriendFeed. Plurk, etc. And there’s Google Wave coming up.
Proponents of Google Sidewiki are saying the blog author is guaranteed the top spot in the Sidewiki comment. It’s reserved for him. I wonder how that helps if you’re subjected to nasty attacks from trolls though.
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bloggista Replies:
October 10th, 2009 at 5:53 pm
Whats so funny Jan is that you’re being guaranted a top spot in your own website!
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I don’t think it is useful to the bloggers themselves.
I hope this project fail.
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actually kanina ko lang napansin ang google sidewiki, but never tried it yet, hehe..
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bloggista Replies:
October 11th, 2009 at 11:25 pm
Hello Joliber, how are you doing? Di ba kayo nabaha sa inyo?
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Joliber Replies:
October 12th, 2009 at 11:15 pm
nku kuya, ang taas ng baha sa amin, hangga ngayon, pero natural na kasi sa amin un, ehehehe.. candaba, pamp, kami, nasa tv lagi dahil sa baha, ehhehe
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i haven’t seen that one yet. Is it in the google toolbar? my my me. i am at loss when it comes to the latest of the latest these days.
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Ahmm…I can’t really digest what this Sidewiki is all about. This only actually on my personal view is more irritating than actually being helpful or to say embodying multi-tasking at its finest.
And damn, putting me on the top spot at my own website?! Hilarious.
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Thanks for sharing. Hindi kayo umattend nung Philippine Blog Awards?
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baka naman maging dahilan n yan ng high load ng blog ko.madalas n kc ako mag high load eh
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I was in hype for a day or two about the Sidewiki, and then it wore off lol
I hope Wave is more successful than this
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I think taking content control away from blog and site owners is a fairly disastrous freedom. Many site owners
work hard at keeping good content up. Allowing others to hack on one’s work because they happen not to agree or they are simply spiteful people is probably going to develop into a big problem. I don’t think this will end well.
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