Non-news for nerds, stuff that doesn't matter
August 14, 2008 12:04 PM Subscribe
idle.slashdot.org is slashdot's place for off-topic videos/humour/viral web junk. Official announcement.
I thought slashdot was slashdot's place for idle, offtopic junk.
posted by boo_radley at 12:12 PM on August 14, 2008 [4 favorites]
posted by boo_radley at 12:12 PM on August 14, 2008 [4 favorites]
Because the normal /. content is too serious?
posted by octothorpe at 12:14 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by octothorpe at 12:14 PM on August 14, 2008
Needs more hot gits.
posted by furtive at 12:15 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by furtive at 12:15 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
Finally, a place on the Internet for nerds to just be themselves.
posted by DU at 12:18 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by DU at 12:18 PM on August 14, 2008
You can tell they're going to fail just by the title. "idle"? Really? That's practically saying "If you visit, you'll have a guilty conscience because this is not puritanical SERIOUS BUSINESS".
Also: Linux geeks that read slashdot are not funny, and isn't this just Reddit?
posted by amuseDetachment at 12:18 PM on August 14, 2008
Also: Linux geeks that read slashdot are not funny, and isn't this just Reddit?
posted by amuseDetachment at 12:18 PM on August 14, 2008
snarkers confirm it: slashdot is dyin
etc
posted by bonaldi at 12:21 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
etc
posted by bonaldi at 12:21 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
Couldn't agree more with this opinion from the /. thread:
"What's this fascination with making a Digg-like site, anyway? 95% of what's on Digg sucks. Stop trying to be like them."
posted by porn in the woods at 12:27 PM on August 14, 2008 [2 favorites]
"What's this fascination with making a Digg-like site, anyway? 95% of what's on Digg sucks. Stop trying to be like them."
posted by porn in the woods at 12:27 PM on August 14, 2008 [2 favorites]
When did Slashdot become so eyeball-gougingly ugly? It always looked like it was designed by techies (which it was). But now it looks like it was designed by techies who hate me and want me to cry.
posted by Plutor at 12:38 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by Plutor at 12:38 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
(Score: -5, Unnecessary)
posted by tommasz at 12:40 PM on August 14, 2008 [3 favorites]
posted by tommasz at 12:40 PM on August 14, 2008 [3 favorites]
The Slashdot interface is so ugly, and the design so eye-searing that I read its content through the incredibly useful AlterSlash. It has the additional advantage of not including any idle content. The only thing that could make it more useful is if it filtered "Funny"-flagged comments out entirely, since at Slashdot the word "Funny" has evolved a meaning that excludes actual humor.
posted by majick at 12:43 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by majick at 12:43 PM on August 14, 2008
Metafilter: slashdot's place for off-topic videos/humour/viral web junk.
idle.slashdot: The Plastic.com it's okay to like.
posted by shmegegge at 12:46 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
idle.slashdot: The Plastic.com it's okay to like.
posted by shmegegge at 12:46 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
When did Slashdot become so eyeball-gougingly ugly?
Ow. That's horrible. It’s like some coder who considers design and HTML to be trivialities hacked it together from random elements left over form the CSS redesign (which, in fairness to Slashdot, I actually thought was pretty good at the time).
posted by Artw at 12:47 PM on August 14, 2008
Ow. That's horrible. It’s like some coder who considers design and HTML to be trivialities hacked it together from random elements left over form the CSS redesign (which, in fairness to Slashdot, I actually thought was pretty good at the time).
posted by Artw at 12:47 PM on August 14, 2008
Man, remember when CmdrTaco and Hemos claimed they were going to shut down AlterSlash. They had some crackpot theory of copyrights where they thought not only did they own the copyright of their commenter's posts, but also that they were required to police other people's uses of said copyrighted content.
Obviously, none of that is true, and it was pretty much at odds with everything they 'stood for'. It's amazing how people's anti-authoritarian vibes pretty much flip on their heads once they get some authority.
It was obvious that the Rob seemed to actively hate posters, or seemed to feel like they were some kind of burden or something.
I think that was about the time I gave up on that site.
posted by delmoi at 12:51 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
Obviously, none of that is true, and it was pretty much at odds with everything they 'stood for'. It's amazing how people's anti-authoritarian vibes pretty much flip on their heads once they get some authority.
It was obvious that the Rob seemed to actively hate posters, or seemed to feel like they were some kind of burden or something.
I think that was about the time I gave up on that site.
posted by delmoi at 12:51 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
idle.slashdot.org: Where penis bird has come to roost.
posted by YoBananaBoy at 12:51 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by YoBananaBoy at 12:51 PM on August 14, 2008
Hasn't Slashdot been ugly since 1997?
Yeah, but the added gradients.
And, heh, it seemed like they added some digg like functionality (calling it 'firehose'). What's hilarious is that people were like begging them to add some kind of voting functionality for years and years. Then Digg came out and now it's valued at like 300 million. If they'd had even a little vision or at least some ability to listen to what other people wanted they'd be in Kevin Rose's shoes now.
Oh well (Not like I like digg, but whatever)
posted by delmoi at 12:54 PM on August 14, 2008
Yeah, but the added gradients.
And, heh, it seemed like they added some digg like functionality (calling it 'firehose'). What's hilarious is that people were like begging them to add some kind of voting functionality for years and years. Then Digg came out and now it's valued at like 300 million. If they'd had even a little vision or at least some ability to listen to what other people wanted they'd be in Kevin Rose's shoes now.
Oh well (Not like I like digg, but whatever)
posted by delmoi at 12:54 PM on August 14, 2008
Oh well (Not like I like digg, but whatever)
Couldn't agree more with this opinion from the /. thread: "What's this fascination with making a Digg-like site, anyway? 95% of what's on Digg sucks. Stop trying to be like them."
Okay, clearly this thread needs a whipping boy, so I will volunteer: I like Digg. It's like a low-threshold MeFi where the low-brow idiocy is natural and sincere rather than top-down enforced like Fark. It's not my favorite link site (MeFi and . . . Slashdot would take those awards), but it's in the top three.
Best burn gets a free favorite from me.
posted by Ryvar at 1:22 PM on August 14, 2008
Couldn't agree more with this opinion from the /. thread: "What's this fascination with making a Digg-like site, anyway? 95% of what's on Digg sucks. Stop trying to be like them."
Okay, clearly this thread needs a whipping boy, so I will volunteer: I like Digg. It's like a low-threshold MeFi where the low-brow idiocy is natural and sincere rather than top-down enforced like Fark. It's not my favorite link site (MeFi and . . . Slashdot would take those awards), but it's in the top three.
Best burn gets a free favorite from me.
posted by Ryvar at 1:22 PM on August 14, 2008
It was suggested by one user that idle may be CmdrTaco's way of fending off the folks in marketing. CmdrTaco more or less confirmed it.
posted by ocha-no-mizu at 1:26 PM on August 14, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by ocha-no-mizu at 1:26 PM on August 14, 2008 [2 favorites]
Next up, asocial networking in slashdot. Can't wait to see the profile pics.
posted by benzenedream at 1:35 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by benzenedream at 1:35 PM on August 14, 2008
What's hilarious is that people were like begging them to add some kind of voting functionality for years and years.
To which they were told, "kuro5hin sucks".
posted by daniel_charms at 2:12 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
To which they were told, "kuro5hin sucks".
posted by daniel_charms at 2:12 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
digg vs reddit... who wins?
Whoever wins, we lose.
posted by shakespeherian at 2:13 PM on August 14, 2008 [2 favorites]
Whoever wins, we lose.
posted by shakespeherian at 2:13 PM on August 14, 2008 [2 favorites]
Wow, it's like MetaFilter with little colorful bars on the side. And more geeks.
posted by jbickers at 2:14 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by jbickers at 2:14 PM on August 14, 2008
Aliens vs Predator vs Terminator vs digg vs reddit vs Robocop vs Superman vs Batman
posted by Artw at 2:19 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 2:19 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
MetaFilter: isn't this just Reddit?
Hahahahah ahaha aah
ha
hah
heh..
Um. No.
posted by eyeballkid at 3:12 PM on August 14, 2008
Hahahahah ahaha aah
ha
hah
heh..
Um. No.
posted by eyeballkid at 3:12 PM on August 14, 2008
Okay. Slashdot may be not be beautiful, but there's a long tradition of ugly user interfaces among *nix people--willful ugliness as a badge of pride. Did any of you try Linux in the mid 90s?
posted by belvidere at 3:15 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by belvidere at 3:15 PM on August 14, 2008
From the announcement: "We intend to fill our idle section with a very small collection of the very best the net has to offer..."
Best of the net, eh? This will end poorly.
posted by bicyclefish at 4:03 PM on August 14, 2008
Best of the net, eh? This will end poorly.
posted by bicyclefish at 4:03 PM on August 14, 2008
I don't think it's willfull ugliness, I think they're just too focused on fixing broken code to begin worrying about looks.
*ducks*
posted by booticon at 4:12 PM on August 14, 2008
*ducks*
posted by booticon at 4:12 PM on August 14, 2008
"in the mid 90s". Heh.
posted by bonaldi at 4:30 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by bonaldi at 4:30 PM on August 14, 2008 [1 favorite]
I haven't read Slashdot in years. Thanks, Mefites :)
posted by lumensimus at 5:44 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by lumensimus at 5:44 PM on August 14, 2008
I haven't read Slashdot in years, and I continue to not do so. The interface turned me off.
I guess that's (at least one reason) why I keep coming back to MeFi. You can't beat this interface. I mean.. what interface? I love MeFi!
Keep It Simple Slashdot. Epic Fail.
posted by ZachsMind at 7:51 PM on August 14, 2008
I guess that's (at least one reason) why I keep coming back to MeFi. You can't beat this interface. I mean.. what interface? I love MeFi!
Keep It Simple Slashdot. Epic Fail.
posted by ZachsMind at 7:51 PM on August 14, 2008
The best part is how half the comments on the top link are complaining about the unprofessional white text on green background.
posted by churl at 8:47 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by churl at 8:47 PM on August 14, 2008
It's amazing how people's anti-authoritarian vibes pretty much flip on their heads once they get some authority.
Slashdot has never, ever, EVER been anti-authoritarian. Quite the opposite. They just happen to like both Linux and breaking copyright.
It was obvious that the Rob seemed to actively hate posters, or seemed to feel like they were some kind of burden or something.
That was obvious back on Day One.
posted by DU at 7:47 AM on August 15, 2008 [1 favorite]
Slashdot has never, ever, EVER been anti-authoritarian. Quite the opposite. They just happen to like both Linux and breaking copyright.
It was obvious that the Rob seemed to actively hate posters, or seemed to feel like they were some kind of burden or something.
That was obvious back on Day One.
posted by DU at 7:47 AM on August 15, 2008 [1 favorite]
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posted by Damn That Television at 12:09 PM on August 14, 2008