[Sigia-l] RE: Your take on MySpace

[Amy Silvers]

> 
> 
> I agree. The IA isn't awful. The visual style isn't at all 
> slick, but I have a feeling that the lack of slickness 
> contributes greatly to the site's success with teenagers. 
> Maybe it feels subversive?
> 
> Also, MySpace is an interesting instance of people actually 
> using personalization options. It seems like many if not most 
> site users (especially teens) spend a lot of time and effort 
> adding to/modifying their profile designs.
> 
> -Anne
> 
I find the navigation very clunky, though. It's hard to retrace your
path without just hitting the Back button over and over again. And the
search feature is generally abysmal, especially in the music area; more
than once, I've been unable to find a page that I've visited before by
using search. I do better just trying to guess at the URL. And there are
a million little things wrong with the way the site works. One that I
ran into again today, just as an example, is the bulletin board feature.
You can't reply to board posts and have your replies visible on your
bulletin board; you have to repost them yourself and add your reply at
the end. 

Nonetheless, I find myself spending a fair amount of time there compared
to how much time I used to spend on, say, Friendster (which I signed up
for and then almost never used, like lots of people). I'm well over 23
(closer to twice that age, in fact), but my younger friends visit
MySpace all the time, so I check in often to see what they're doing. And
the music section is the real differentiator for me. Nowadays, when
someone recommends a new band, the first thing I do is find out if they
have a MySpace page, because it gives me the opportunity to hear a few
real songs, in full, without a lot of effort. It's amazing how many
bands have built up a MySpace presence in such a short time, but then
again, it makes perfect sense for them to do so. I think that--along
with the legion of teenagers who more or less live on the site--may be
the key to MySpace's enduring success.

--Amy Silvers