Website : Tenses of "Monkey"

posted 2010.10.17 at 17:54

"Fixed" an analytics quirk that I've been living with since I rolled out the new version of the website. I used quotes there for a reason - Analytics being analytics, it'll take awhile to see if it's actually 'stuck' or not.

I'm thinking of implementing tags on the comics and possibly the blog and universe. While this could be fairly non-trivial*, I rather like the idea of, say... one click getting you a list of every page Jason or Thad or Grij or the Sabrosa or (as I'm thinking of tagging things now) any other character or vehicle appears in. Could be handy. Could just be.... buzzwordy. Could also be useful or spoilery - Using recent DCR as an example, tagging operative -4- 'Jesse' tells you who's on the elevator long before she's mentioned by name.

There are a couple of downsides - the first big one is it may turn out to be non-doable, or more hassle than Eric is willing to allow. If that's the case, so be it. If tags are implemented, then the real downside hits - the Mega Tedium of tagging 400+ comic pages. The potential benefits could be worth it, though!

So, here's the question - as a reader, do you see the benefits of implementing tagging? Is it something you actually use on other websites? Are tag clouds useful to readers or just a trendy annoyance? Would it be worth it to take this further than reading and muttering?

Second, semi-related question - anyone see any benefits to adding comment capability to comic pages? I think on it and imagine a long string of "Typo!" and "Fixed!", which doesn't add much to the experience.

The Comment Horror of dcr and the old version of the ATC website - both of which use{d} the same CMS - is the main reason I've never bothered with comments on comic pages. At the time it would have meant an endless torrent of comment spam, mandating hair-pulling janitorial work on a very regular basis. The CAPTCHA seems to have proven out - while I personally consider them a pain in the ass, the implementation has brought MT comment spam to a screaming, shuddering HALT. Haven't been robo-spammed since. Not that I'm aware of, anyway. This means - in theory - that implementing comments should just be a matter of editing the requisite templates and waiting to see if anyone uses them.

15:21 < _Lasar_> solios: Tags might be interesting, but at this stage I wouldn't know why I'd use them. Maybe if I understand what the hell is happening one day. I imagine it would be fairly awesome for you, though. As for comments: Easiest way to invilve readers. Though I don't imagine much in the way of actually interesting commentary.
15:21 < solios> indeed
15:22 < _Lasar_> But it's cheap.
15:22 < _Lasar_> So I say go with comments.
15:22 < _Lasar_> It allows for effortless feedback.
15:23 < _Lasar_> No registering a forum account or sending email or whatever.

There's also that - the importance of which can not be understated.

* See here and here as well. Those two links and the one before the upper asterisk are the extent of my research at present.