Thanks to everyone for emailing about the malfunctioning “More” button in Firefox. Developers are on it and hoping to have it resolved soon.
In the meantime, we’ve set the page to show 40 tips before you hit the “More” button; if you want to see more, we recommend popping open Chrome, EI or Safari.
Thanks for your patience.
I plan to post a lot more frequently to this Tumblr to keep you updated on the company, talk about the site and get your feedback on different things we might want to try. Stay tuned!
BTW, let’s start with this: Last night, in entirely sincere and earnest coverage of the event in Tucson, I inadvertently labeled Christina-Taylor Green as “Jessica.” It was an entirely honest mistake, but one that was inexcusable. I felt and still feel terrible about it, and corrected it as soon as I spotted it.
Thoughts and prayers are with Christina’s family and the many millions who mourn her tragic death. With the error corrected, I hope everyone can focus on the content of the message last night:
“I want us to live up to her expectations. I want our democracy to be as good as she imagined it. All of us — we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children’s expectations.”
Amen. And rest in peace, Christina.
— Dan
Re-publishing the release put out yesterday about the launch of Quickish.
Online media is reaching terminal velocity: News is quick-hit — in form (the “news feed”); in frequency (“30 seconds ago”); and in function (“did you hear?”)
The new problem is keeping up. Automated solutions get overwhelmed. Incumbent media is still trying to wedge old content into new boxes. It’s getting more noisy and more complicated for people to keep up quickly with the big news that is happening.
With the public launch of its beta today, Quickish, founded by longtime online consumer media content developer Dan Shanoff, wants to simplify the experience with quick-hit real-time editor-vetted news recommendations built specifically for the new pace of news.
“People have made it clear how they want to stay updated: Fast,” Shanoff said. “Quick to know something happened, quick to access the best of what is being said, quick to consume, quick to recognize if something is worth their time. Quickish is built for them.”
Quickish is built on “tips” — editor-curated bits of news, analysis and insight that are relevant, smart and urgent. As topics pop, Tips are vetted by editors sourcing everywhere, from Twitter to TV to Tumblr to talk-radio, including user referrals and original content, and published into an easy-to-follow flow.
“We are at the front end of the ‘tip economy,’” Shanoff said. “Information that does a few things at once: It quickly offers you value, it points you to something more if you want it, it gives credit where it’s due and it has the authority and authenticity of someone you trust passing it along.”
Quickish’s initial product will incubate in sports — a natural fit given its news pace and universal interest — with plans to expand into more categories in the second half of the year.
A veteran online media content developer, Shanoff’s previous roles included VP of Content for Associated Content (acquired in 2010 by Yahoo!); creator and producer of the popular “Daily Quickie” on ESPN.com (which followed a content development role in the mid-1990s at Starwave, the pioneering Seattle media and technology studio); and the first editor of Real Fans Sports Network, an original AOL Studios “Greenhouse” investment ultimately acquired by AOL.
*****
Quick(ish) Notes:
*Quickish’s launch Monday coincides with the college football national-championship game, and Quickish will be bringing in a roster of expert guest-contributors to add exclusive commentary before, during and after the game. Follow along at quickish.com/tag/bcs.
*Quickish plans to help publishers and marketers complement their existing editorial and social media initiatives by creating custom editor-vetted real-time quick-hit content streams.
*Quickish is ideal to keep up with hot topics in the first few hours after something trends. It is also useful if you have other stuff going on and just want to catch up quickly at the start or end of the day or when you have a minute of downtime.
*Quickish looks awesome on an iPad’s web browser. Right now it looks “good enough” on the iPhone’s web browser. (There will be a redesigned Web app in time for March Madness.)
*Quickish’s easy-to-follow design was created by Hard Candy Shell, the award-winning UX team. Its development was through Jolly Science, specializing in early-stage companies.
*The web address is quickish.com. The Facebook page is facebook.com/quickish. The Twitter feed is found at @quickish. Dan Shanoff can be reached anytime at dan[at]quickish.com.
*There are no questions about Quickish on Quora, but the quick answer to “Is it a mere coincidence that Quickish and Quora start with the same letter?” is yes.
Thanks for the quick response! Think we will find the right person from the group that got back yesterday and overnight. Really appreciate the interest. More news soon!
Quickish needs an intern. With the launch coming up soon, there is a ton of stuff to get done. I could use someone reliable, creative and detail-oriented (with some writing skill) to help me with a bunch of the different things that are getting pulled together. The job is mostly editorial(-ish) work, but I can’t claim it’s glamorous.
Enticing, I know. But you get to join in on what will hopefully be one of the most exciting media start-ups of 2011. And hopefully get some interesting experience.
I’m looking for someone who has a passion for the intersection of sports and media (but NOT “sports media.”) Ideally, you’re on break from college from now through mid-January, with little to do but help me out. (This is NOT meant to dominate your time; call it 15-20 hours a week, but it’s flexible.)
You don’t have to be in New York (where I am), but if you are, that’s a bonus. You’ll be working from home/dorm/Starbucks/Gchat/Skype anyway.
If you’re interested, shoot me a note at help@quickish.com.
“Follow the news. Remember that timeliness means being on time, not before the time.”
— Rule No. 8 from The Atlantic’s timeless mid-20th-century rules for making a good publication.
Jeff Atwood of Stack Overflow (twice in one day!).
I am obsessed with UX — enough to know to put the Quickish experience in the hands of the sharpest UX team in the industry: Hard Candy Shell.
From Day 1, they have been a phenomenal team to work with. It is energizing and inspiring to run with the best.
Loved this post by Stack Overflow CTO Jeff Atwood, talking about the essential nature of speed — but framing it around “Better Off Dead” character Charles DeMar’s quote:
“Go that way, really fast. If something gets in your way, turn.”
Atwood talks about how they apply that philosophy at Stack: Speed of iteration matters. You can see it in their rate of product development and confidence of their place in world.
When we think about Quickish, it isn’t just about people wanting to keep up quickly with the big things that are happening…
…it is also about a unique pace of recognizing new opportunities, developing products, and having a metabolism built around a mindset that is a tick away from sheer speed:
Hustle.
