So, there are a couple reasons why I’m going to show some unlove for Earfl.com on this day.
First, I don’t like the idea of online audio that stands alone with no videos or significant photos or text. It’s probably the least interesting use I can think of for the social Web. It’s like trying to convince people to listen to a radio program; as a big fan of A Prairie Home Companion, I can tell you that audio content has to be really friggin’ awesome to get anyone to tune in. UGC content of this nature is not gonna cut it.
Second, I don’t like that it doesn’t lend itself very well to posting on other non-blog sites. Not Twitter, not FriendFeed, not Plurk (stupid Plurk). No RSS feeds. Nothin’. And the little embed code for posting a widget to my blog hasn’t even worked yet… but I’m reserving judgement on that for now.
Third, the tag cloud would indicate that people are sharing the stupidest shit imaginable, filed under “secrets”, “confessions”, and “fantasies”. This goes back to my previous observation that the site is designed primarily for cokeheads. I don’t want to know that you’re sleeping with an engaged man. I don’t want to know that you “secretly” want to work as a phone sex lady. This is the kind of TMI one-way conversation that happens where the entrapped listener just holds the phone away from his head for a few minutes and waits for the flood of embarrassingly personal revelation to stop.
You know what, though… It would be nice if all the cokeheads knew about Earfl. Just so the rest of us don’t have to get an earful… Hmm…
Fourth, the options are “listen” and “tell”. With the Web becoming more and more about conversation, where are the buttons and links to “respond”, “forward”, and “share”? Favorites? Bookmarks?* Comments are ok, but I strongly feel that video and audio content should allow for video and audio responses. And since it’s audio, doesn’t it make sense that I should be able to forward it to someone’s mobile? Just sayin’.
And the fifth and final reason I don’t like Earfl.com: I have tried five times to post a test recording of my own, and guess what?
No dice.
Nothing’s posted, and after several hours, I’ve stopped holding my breath. I’d love to be able to play around with my own recordings and see the capabilities of the website, but I’ve already wasted too much of today feeling crappy about Earfl.
So, for disappointing this user and woefully missing the mark, it rates an F for, you know, FAIL.
FAIL
*EDIT: Ok, finally saw the ShareThis link/button. Guess what, though? Now I’m going to rip on the UI for not making the ShareThis function more visible. Because in social media, nothing is the user’s fault. Ever.
Seriously, why does “Email This” get a big gold button and ShareThis gets a text link and a tiny icon? Does anyone see email as anything more than a total bore-chore these days?
And I really hate the clunky interface, all non-link-finding aside.
