So... A response to my last article: Digg vs. Slashdot: A Comparison article seemed to be better-suited to Digg. I would have thought it better to Slashdot.

But what I found most interesting about getting that article on Digg was that, in the end, all the response I got to the article seemed to match perfectly my stereotyping of Digg: That is, no continutity in comments, no useful conversation, and no sense of community. All in all, it appears that everyone on Digg doesn't seem to be capable of understanding that article. One really good response came out of that post - and, of course, it wasn't on Digg. This article "Why Digg sucks... and how it could be better" sums up basically everything I didn't say, and that was how to go about improving Digg: And that is to put up a comment system that supports conversation, so that you can see which conversations are replies and which ones aren't.

That would make a good first step, however, technology isn't the only thing that is required to foster change - the community needs to adjust to this system. Once Digg has a system that encourages community and free conversation, the users of it have to be encouraged towards using it, so whilst the aforementioned post does say something right about how to improve it, a lot still needs to be done.

To quote that article

"I personally think it’s the way Slashdot has built their discussion boards."

- but it's not only that: it's the way that Slashdot has built its community. It targets the niche that is already established, and drives away those whom it doesn't suit - one of the frequently occurring responses on Digg was that Slashdot's layout was ugly. But it seems as though this layout suits its purpose very well - it prevents people who aren't suited to the community from becoming part of it.

So, in conclusion, yes, Digg could improve its comment system, but the community itself has to improve, and that currently doesn't seem likely.

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