[extropy-chat] ExI Website - Your Comments

Damien Sullivan phoenix at ugcs.caltech.edu
Sun Oct 23 08:35:23 UTC 2005


Not being one who went to past websites frequently, I think it'd be easier to
comment well if old layouts were available for comparison.

That said, it looks very... corporate.  Or think tanky.  "Professional" but
not in a way I'd find likely to be interesting.  The fonts and logos, and map,
probably the color scheme, and the prominent ABC logo, I think those all work
together.  If the goal was to look more mainstream I think you succeeded quite
well, but I think I preferred an older version with the outward spiral of
arrows.

I have a dim sense that I didn't like the most recent website that much,
instead preferring something a few generations back, but it's impossible to be
sure going only by my memory.  Something that said "wacky ideas here!" rather
than "whitepapers here, and tax-deductible donations accepted".

"Extro Extro Read All About It" works against all that though, and is a
cheerful breath of irreverence.

Content-wise... it's late and I'm tired, but it seems like a 'professional'
site in being heavy on PR stuff -- press releases, announcement of conferences
-- and low on interesting material to browse, especially beyond the
Proactionary Principle and the Transhumanist FAQ.  "Why am I at this website?"
is the key question which I don't find well answered, especially quickly.

Sorry to be so critical, but those are my quick reactions -- probably not
completely irrelevant, given that people will often glance at and stay with or
leave a site quickly.

By way of contrast, I think the website for a local LARP is decently.
Visually catchy, and quick to provide information.  Information probably not
of any general interest but that's good to establish too.  Of course, I
actually know stuff about the game, so that's a bias.
http://www.taleofwinter.com/

More relevantly, www.singinst.org seems more both a bit catchier and much more
direct: "What is the Singularity?" vs. "ExI is an ideas exchange." followed by
sentences which don't obviously distinguish ExI from the Rand Institute.
Or see the Orion's Arm page.

-xx- Damien X-) 



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