The Synergy Project
<div class="IPBDescription">Open source web application for collaborative problem solving</div>I whipped up a simple animation that kind of outlines the idea for the web site. Any kind of feedback is appreciated. =)
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqRbagRpnyw" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqRbagRpnyw</a>
The same video is placed on the web-site as well:
<a href="http://www.OneSynergy.org" target="_blank">www.OneSynergy.org</a>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqRbagRpnyw" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqRbagRpnyw</a>
The same video is placed on the web-site as well:
<a href="http://www.OneSynergy.org" target="_blank">www.OneSynergy.org</a>
Comments
Plus you have the main problem being that the sample is weighted hugely towards 'people inclined to post on forumlike websites' which would probably not accurately represent actual problem severity.
Also I don't think many people are really motivated to just randomly solve problems, people usually have one specific cause and they campaign for it, the amount of motivation any given person feels to do something often seems to be inversely proportional to the amount of things they want to do something about, as well as their ability to retain enough perspective to avoid causing more problems with their proposed solutions, and to ensure their solutions actually work.
Trying to remove ego from the equation basically means you invented a website for perfectly altruistic people with a sense of professional detachment and a lot of free time on their hands to engage in projects outside the scope of their jobs, as any problem within their job is already their concern and they are already trying to solve it. Such people are rather rare I think.
The video is very well put together, good job. The thing I'd suggest working on a bit more - it's clear that you know this already - is more contrast in both visual themes (black and white is a good start) and overall presentation (kill your darlings, cut corners if it helps readability, never waste a second of time).
At first, I would agree. I think the answer to that solution is in the way the site could be built. For example, in any sort of content submission through the site, it actually asks the user to search first. (not literally ask) But the way in which you submit content is by searching through fields, and once a user has found a hole (as in, the content you're looking for is not there.) Then users can submit. Essentially this creates a "funnel" for content, pushing people towards previously created content that is related to what they are looking for/want to submit.
And second, even if everyone did submit everything imaginable. Only the voted issues would be seen most of the time.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Plus you have the main problem being that the sample is weighted hugely towards 'people inclined to post on forumlike websites' which would probably not accurately represent actual problem severity.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Agreed. <i>Actual</i> problem severity is different than perceived severity. Think of this as an online community for forum-like posters inclined to talk about issues that affect them.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->Also I don't think many people are really motivated to just randomly solve problems, people usually have one specific cause and they campaign for it, the amount of motivation any given person feels to do something often seems to be inversely proportional to the amount of things they want to do something about, as well as their ability to retain enough perspective to avoid causing more problems with their proposed solutions, and to ensure their solutions actually work.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Well see, its not for people to randomly solve problems. Its to connect people to problems they most likely would care about. Oddly enough people with severe disagreements in one particular part of their life can still work together on problems that plague them both. Relating users together based on their common problems gives people at least a stepping stone in common ground and reason to work together. Conversely. I'm SURE there would be mega-divisions and arguments within a community like such. And I find that to be part of the challenge in finding a way to create an application that can help solve that problem as well. I think there is a lot to be learned from the building of the site and community, let alone the issues within it.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->That is ingenious. In fact I know a group of people who would be very directly interested in something like this. Would you know if there's going to be a per-group/organisation/project/etc. issue collaboration?
The video is very well put together, good job. The thing I'd suggest working on a bit more - it's clear that you know this already - is more contrast in both visual themes (black and white is a good start) and overall presentation (kill your darlings, cut corners if it helps readability, never waste a second of time).<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I'm not too sure what you mean by your question. We want the platform to be scalable for use amongst a private group or organization. The Synergy Project is like the main example in what we want it to do. Yet, would want any general person to be able to download the platform, install it, set it up, and then use it amongst a small organization, or business. Basically The Synergy Project compared to the application, is what Wikipedia is compared to the wiki platform.
And thank you for your suggestions, I tried to make the animation alright without putting too much effort into it. I figure if the idea catches on more then I'll have to make a more refined and professional looking animation. =)
That's great, just what I was looking for. Keep up the great work!
<!--quoteo(post=1762881:date=Apr 6 2010, 05:43 AM:name=Xerond)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Xerond @ Apr 6 2010, 05:43 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1762881"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->And thank you for your suggestions, I tried to make the animation alright without putting too much effort into it. I figure if the idea catches on more then I'll have to make a more refined and professional looking animation. =)<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Well, you certainly understand what's going on, that much is clear. One the effort side of things, I could only advise looking into automation and template creation that most software allows for these days, assuming you haven't already.
However, as with all "community" efforts, you gotta get people to sign on. Once you hit critical mass, it can be awesome. Otherwise it'll be just another awesome idea that failed.
Something tricky will be to codify the tags well. There are plenty of synonyms out there and getting people to use similar tags isn't always easy. And you don't want to lock in a rigid pre-defined tags only because inevitably you'll miss something. Perhaps developing a way to also link tags would be a good idea, i.e. tags that seem to have high correlations should start to be merged.
The +/- w/ comments I think will be crucial, although I'm sure there will be plenty of simple, copy-paste comments as it matures with only a few insightful ones.
Thats a great idea.
Conversely, since tags are being related to each-other. As a user sets up or changes their user settings (setting their tags) as they type in say one word, a field could pop up showing them what other words are related to it. This way pages are assured not to miss related words, and user filters as well.
Good work sir. Much appreciated.
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->However, as with all "community" efforts, you gotta get people to sign on. Once you hit critical mass, it can be awesome. Otherwise it'll be just another awesome idea that failed.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Agreed. The problem I'm faced with now is just trying to hunt down and stir developer interests and see if the idea can catch enough of that. Then, maybe if it catches a large enough community it could go somewhere. All depends on the interest of other people. So far the initial response has been good.
Assuming as you say, only high voted problems will be really visible, you need some way for new problems to become visible, otherwise it will always be occupied by things like 'cure cancer' 'world peace' 'establish justice' 'terraform mars' 'build a giant death ray to shoot down asteroids' etc. Things which everyone wants but nobody really knows how to solve.
So, maybe something when you enter a new issue, it searches for similar existing issues, and you need some way to funnel all votes for similar issues into one single issue, or alternatively, you could have 'issue clouds', clusters of very similar issues which all cover more or less the same ground but with minor tweaks, however solving one would go a long way to solving all others in the cloud.
If your plan is an orgnaisational system for problems, you might want to try and represent every possible aspect of a problem, including interdependencies between them.
I do agree that is a good point. I thought of having a "view new issues" option over most popular and other specifics. But oddly I don't think that would be enough to keep the distraction of top issues catching too much attention.
Your idea for relating problems together fits perfectly with the relation concept I had at the end if the issue page thing. Maybe a way to gain more interest in newer submitted problems, would be to include a relate option when a user submits a problem. This way right off the bat, if the poster has attached the problem to several, then the relation will show up in the more popular threads "related problem field." Trickle down effect? So now we have two options: Users can browse through the mass of content bottom up. (brand new, low vote stuff) Or slide down the popular threads down into lower-related stuff. Top-down.
Issues clouds is a great idea. Using votes to help tie problems together, thats a great idea.
Cool stuff dude, thanks a lot for your help. Really appreciated. Your cloud issues make me thing of this:
<a href="http://vimeo.com/5073319" target="_blank">http://vimeo.com/5073319</a>
3D Data Library Visualization
<a href="http://www.superstructgame.net/" target="_blank">http://www.superstructgame.net/</a>
<a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/jane_mcgonigal_gaming_can_make_a_better_world.html" target="_blank">Jane McGonigal: Gaming can make a better world </a>
<!--quoteo--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec--><i>Games like World of Warcraft give players the means to save worlds, and incentive to learn the habits of heroes. What if we could harness this gamer power to solve real-world problems? Jane McGonigal says we can, and explains how.</i>
Jane McGonigal asks: <b>Why doesn't the real world work more like an online game?</b> In the best-designed games, our human experience is optimized: We have important work to do, we're surrounded by potential collaborators, and we learn quickly and in a low-risk environment. In her work as a game designer, she creates games that use mobile and digital technologies to turn everyday spaces into playing fields, and everyday people into teammates. Her game-world insights can explain -- and improve -- the way we learn, work, solve problems, and lead our real lives.
McGonigal directs game R&D at the Institute for the Future, a nonprofit forecasting firm where she developed Superstruct, a massively multiplayer game in which players organize society to solve for issues that will confront the world in 2019. She masterminded World Without Oil, which simulated the beginning of a global oil crisis and inspired players to change their daily energy habits. McGonigal also works with global companies to develop games that build on our collective-intelligence infrastructure -- like The Lost Ring, a mystery game for McDonald's that became the world’s biggest alternate reality game, played by more than 5 million people. (Not to mention the delightful Top Secret Dance-Off, which taps that space in our brains where embarrasment and joy mingle.) She's working on book called Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Happy and How They Can Change the World.
<i>"Instead of providing gamers with better and more immersive alternatives to reality, I want all of us to be become responsible for providing the world with a better and more immersive reality."</i>
<b>Jane McGonigal</b><!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
-(Taken from the TED video explanation)
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In other news, I've submitted a series of concept graphics in our forums, you can find those here:
<a href="http://www.onesynergy.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=182" target="_blank">http://www.onesynergy.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=182</a><a href="http://www.onesynergy.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=182" target="_blank">
<img src="http://onesynergy.org/developer/Trav/concepts/peak-results-small.jpg" border="0" class="linked-image" /></a> These will help explain how the site could work much more extensively than the video.
We've accumulated a small group of developers so far and have begun our planning stage. Once we've isolated what core features we would like in the first public release, we'll be dividing the workload up and assigning tasks to those who want them.
If you're a developer and would like to follow our progress we're handling our source at github:
<a href="http://github.com/Syner/Syner" target="_blank">http://github.com/Syner/Syner</a>
If you're someone who would be interested in using the application once its ready for testing, please sign up for our monthly newsletter on our onesynergy homepage and you'll be contacted once we're ready.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OasD80MH7CA" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OasD80MH7CA</a>
We’ve also just recently launched the developer portal for the application that will be powering The Synergy Project, which is the main hub for developers concerning Syner:
<a href="http://www.Syner.org" target="_blank">http://www.Syner.org</a>