In addition to JapanSoc Sumo, I’ve tweaked a couple of other things on JapanSoc this week…
Have you got Genki?
If you don’t know, “genki” is the Japanese word for “active energetic happiness” or other less exciting definitions. As such, it’s the perfect replacement for JapanSoc’s Karma, a measure of a user’s activity over the last 7 days.
Although I should be asking “Are you genki?”, I find it much more amusing to use it as a noun…
- Do you have Genki?
- What’s your Genki?
- I gotta get me some Genki!
But how much Genki can you have? The formula for Genki considers stories submitted to JapanSoc, votes and also comments. Previously, Karma didn’t use comments in its calculation, but now, with a dose of Genki, it does! The most Genki you can have is 100%, and you can check your current Genki on your profile page.
Note: Points, Sumo Rank and Genki are updated every 6 hours, not instantly.
Sidebar overhaul
You may have noticed I’ve revamped the JapanSoc sidebar. It was getting too busy for my liking, and I really wanted to keep it clean. This image shows how each sidebar box now has tabs to switch between its contents:
I hope you’ll agree that this layout is better. Incidentally, registered users and casual surfers see a different variation of the sidebar. If you haven’t registered, emphasis is given to “Monthly Picks”, whereas registered users see the “Upcoming” box more often.
Suggestions for future improvements
Without a professional developer to help, there are limitations on the kind of features I can implement into JapanSoc. That won’t stop me trying though, and my amateurish efforts behind the scenes are the reason for the “beta” label next to the JapanSoc title. My apologies if you’ve tried using the site during those frantic moments when I’m doing some live testing!
There are two things currently on the drawing board; 1) to allow you to add more than one “homepage” to your profile. Some of you write for more than one website and I think it would be nice if you could add those links to your profile (Update: Done!), and 2) follow up Deas’ suggestion for a “Who’s Online?” feature. I think it’s a great idea and certainly worth pursuing.
If you have any other ideas for improving JapanSoc, please leave a comment. In the meantime, I have to live up to my Makkuchi sumo rank and find some interesting articles to submit. Maybe I can boost my Genki! 😛
If you like, you can find me on Twitter at @nick_ramsay. I'd love to hear from you!
I can’t believe that I’m more genki than you Nick – you’re a pretty genki guy!
I’m looking forward to the additional slot for another homepage.
I blame it on energy drinks! Anyway, I’ve now got the extra url fields done, so you can add two other sites into your profile. 🙂
Since writing this, I’ve re-written the Genki formula into something a little more understandable. It goes like this:
7% = 1 story submitted
5% = 1 comment
3% = 1 soc
-5% per day of inactivity
This actually makes it easier to be 100% Genki, and who wouldn’t want that, right? 🙂
Thanks Nick – Go Genki-man!
I don’t like the -5% per day for inactivity on the JapanSoc website. I mean, how do you know I wasn’t out on the streets hustling and getting the word out about JSoc?
Looks like i have some work to do …. away for 10 days meant i was very not genki.