2 years, 1 month ago
What is Mahalo's vision?
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M$1 Answer
It seems that, originally, it was meant to be a "human powered search engine." Even with the massive expansion of the site---that's still what it basically is.
Additionally, Jason Calacanis, the founder of Mahalo, said this about the site on Mahalo on backtype.com, "We’re an original content site like Wikipedia or Yahoo Answers with a little search added. So, Matt is right we are a content site first (i’d say content and community)."
I don't think those ideas are mutually exclusive--the second answer seems more right than the first, though. Now, how the site goes about achieving that vision---as we know, that's a continual work in progress.
*If you want to see the official answer, go to Mahalo
Additionally, Jason Calacanis, the founder of Mahalo, said this about the site on Mahalo on backtype.com, "We’re an original content site like Wikipedia or Yahoo Answers with a little search added. So, Matt is right we are a content site first (i’d say content and community)."
I don't think those ideas are mutually exclusive--the second answer seems more right than the first, though. Now, how the site goes about achieving that vision---as we know, that's a continual work in progress.
*If you want to see the official answer, go to Mahalo
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
How can we get the staff to answer this question? If I had spent 50 dollars on the question would that get a proper response?
Like both Yahoo! Answers and Wikipedia, Mahalo's content relies on regular people to do the work within certain guidelines. I think the human search capability includes all of that---doesn't mean that every person will try and find 20 sources to back them up or that every question is an academic one. Also, if you ask a question on Mahalo, you often end up with a conversation. There might be one best answer; however, the other answers might illuminate something the best answer doesn't or make you think about something you hadn't thought of before.
As with the Pages, I think Mahalo's pages are like Wikipedia's but less academic, more interactive, and, in theory, required to be updated. Also, a lot (if not all) of the work is reviewed before publication, unlike with Wikipedia, which has to police its content after the fact.
To me, the biggest things that differentiates Mahalo is that it offers incentives to create content besides/in addition to the joy of spreading knowledge, like the belt system and, my personal favorite, Mahalo Bucks. I do think that those incentives up the quality of the responses. At least in my case, I am more apt to try to do a thorough job and I am also more apt to tackle questions that I need to do a lot of research (to make up for a lack of expertise) to answer.
In your opinion how is Mahalo's content like Wikipedia or Yahoo answers?
Do you thinking the human search capability includes personal experience, professional expertise, academic rigor, and vast source documentation?
Your thoughts will suffice.
Thanks for the votes giving this important question visibility.
@nancyke11y thanks for the tip. This is an important question for you to receive an answer. Hopefully, we will get a message from Jason.