The "new" Mixx
If you’re a Mixx user, you might have noticed that the interface seems to have gotten a bit less crowded today. The social news site, in which users act as a mixture of editor and judge by submitting and voting content to the site’s front page, seems to have removed the ability to vote items down.
As someone with not one, but two curmudgeon awards – given to Mixx users for leading the day in down votes, I have to say I’m a bit sorry to see this feature go. Not because I’m an inherently negative person, but rather because I’m a spam buster. Every once in a while, I’ll go through the Book section of Mixx.com and vote down any content that isn’t book related. Doing so helps to keep the section free of spammy submissions without having to bother the powers-that-be.
The new defunct downvote button button was frequently used in political discussions – creating a tug-of-war between Mixxers of opposing political views to remove or promote a story from reaching the front page.
The ultimate result of this buttons removal is yet to be seen. On one hand, the Mixx front page could see an increase in the variety of stories, with more controversial submissions no longer able to be buried. On the other, the front page can more easily be dominated by a single voting bloc which organizes its powers to promote a defined agenda. I guess, in the end, only time will tell.
Little red down vote button, you shall be missed.
Bradley Robb likes TV and books, and has an intense dislike for cinnamon. Once, Bradley stopped a Soviet T-60 with his middle finger. Bradley writes speculative fiction and edits Fiction Matters, and never really got the hang of talking about himself in the third person.