Review my new site, EndAnts.com, please. It's supposed to make you happier.(endants.com)
endants.com
Review my new site, EndAnts.com, please. It's supposed to make you happier.
http://www.endants.com
42 comments
The front page gives me no idea of what I will get by registering, so it's hard to commit to getting an account. (Maybe that would have been remedied by the demo people seem to be mentioning.) It also does nothing to explain what the site does or how it works, other than a vague goal.
I agree. I would like to see a couple bullet points or sentences explaining how the site will end "ANTs" for me. I don't want to sit through a demo video.
I hear you guys loud and clear. I'm going to work on redesigning the homepage ASAP. Thank you.
Honestly, I read the site, nodded my head, but then realized I couldn't get any info on what your application does. At that point, I left.
You should consider having some kind of description/screenshot on what your specific product does.
You should consider having some kind of description/screenshot on what your specific product does.
Great idea, I will make that clear & add some sort of visual as well.
I walked it through (without registering) and thought it was interesting, but was surprised to not see any summary of my input at the end, or analysis provided, or anything other than to be dumped back to the start page.
I mean, a certain amount of the point is self-evident by its asking you to re-evaluate your original statements and feelings, but I feel like it's an exercise I would do once, learn or discard, and then never need the website again after that. What further functionality is planned?
I mean, a certain amount of the point is self-evident by its asking you to re-evaluate your original statements and feelings, but I feel like it's an exercise I would do once, learn or discard, and then never need the website again after that. What further functionality is planned?
OK, good feedback. I disabled demo mode. Try going through the process with registering? This way, you can get anonymous feedback from other users on possible thought distortions you neglected in your interpretation of the negative event.
I got to the homepage and didn't really know if it was a game or what the heck it was. I only saw "Register" and "Login" buttons, some links to what seemed to be external sites, so... I left :)
I really like this idea. I can even imagine signing up. But before I sign up I need to see clear 3rd party validation from 3 or more reputable sources (e.g. Harvard Psychology Prof) that this approach is effective. In a perfect world this would be specific to your site but I would settle for a strong linkage between the theory your site is built on and the research that backs it.
Why? Because I'm too lazy to do that research myself so I need you to beat me over the head with it. Without that proof I just find myself thinking, "Hmmm good idea. I could use this. But does this work? Why should I trust this site? I could look into it but... too much work". Then I click back button. If you have that info somewhere on the site you need to put it front and center. You have about 10 seconds before I give up and bail.
Why? Because I'm too lazy to do that research myself so I need you to beat me over the head with it. Without that proof I just find myself thinking, "Hmmm good idea. I could use this. But does this work? Why should I trust this site? I could look into it but... too much work". Then I click back button. If you have that info somewhere on the site you need to put it front and center. You have about 10 seconds before I give up and bail.
This is excellent. For more reasons than one.
First of all, from an online marketing and technical standpoint, i love how you force me to try the app rather than giving me a chance to deliberate whether i want to try it or not. good play on invoking my curiousity.
Secondly, and more importantly, what you are trying to achive is very noble, and i mean that sincerely, and the way that you are trying to achieve it is rather amazing.
I go through a re-framing process such as this often in my mastermind group meetings, but to be able to automate this in the way that you have done is truly amazing.
I'm already hooked, and i hope your app can keep me there. This could be a life changer.
First of all, from an online marketing and technical standpoint, i love how you force me to try the app rather than giving me a chance to deliberate whether i want to try it or not. good play on invoking my curiousity.
Secondly, and more importantly, what you are trying to achive is very noble, and i mean that sincerely, and the way that you are trying to achieve it is rather amazing.
I go through a re-framing process such as this often in my mastermind group meetings, but to be able to automate this in the way that you have done is truly amazing.
I'm already hooked, and i hope your app can keep me there. This could be a life changer.
Thanks for your kind words. I really appreciate it. Is this something you would consider paying for?
I would only consider paying for it, if it was to actively interrupt my day, every day to make sure that i dont get into a negative cycle.
And you'd have to organise that in such a way, that it interrupts me enough to help me, but not enough to become a chore or an annoyance.
That'd have to be quite the balance you would have to achieve.
And you'd have to organise that in such a way, that it interrupts me enough to help me, but not enough to become a chore or an annoyance.
That'd have to be quite the balance you would have to achieve.
I like it. Here's some feedback:
The sliders don't render correctly on chrome (they overlap the other elements).
Step 7 didn't work for me. I clicked it and it didn't do anything. I then couldn't figure out how to get 'back' or to restart the process. I then logged out and then logged back in and expected to see where I left off but didn't.
Minor - it'd be nice to be able to log in with either an email address or username. I used a gmail tracking email to "[email protected]" to see if I get spam and don't want to have to enter that every time.
Neat concept! I would have liked to be able to finish it though.
The sliders don't render correctly on chrome (they overlap the other elements).
Step 7 didn't work for me. I clicked it and it didn't do anything. I then couldn't figure out how to get 'back' or to restart the process. I then logged out and then logged back in and expected to see where I left off but didn't.
Minor - it'd be nice to be able to log in with either an email address or username. I used a gmail tracking email to "[email protected]" to see if I get spam and don't want to have to enter that every time.
Neat concept! I would have liked to be able to finish it though.
Thanks!
1) Can you please post a screenshot of the sliders on chrome?
2) I fixed the bug with Step 7. I like your suggestion about saving progress... I will try to work that in (added a TODO).
3) You can now log in with your email address -or- username. :)
1) Can you please post a screenshot of the sliders on chrome?
2) I fixed the bug with Step 7. I like your suggestion about saving progress... I will try to work that in (added a TODO).
3) You can now log in with your email address -or- username. :)
Great idea, but I think it needs gradual engagement. In other words, no registration initially. People can register after they've tried it out, but obviously it should keep the data collected so far. That solves the problem of having to describe what it actually does, as you can have step 1 right on the front page.
You should (I think) adjust the amount of karma received for reviewing negative thoughts downwards. In my experience people are the type of animal that likes to sniff others' poo and will gladly offer opinions on them even with a smaller reward :-(
The invite-a-friend form is broken on Firefox 3.6.8. I only get a text field with an URL in it by default (http://www.endants.com/?r=42), and no way to submit the form even after I enter an e-mail.
Your feedback on both these points is noted. I'll fix both of them. Thank you!
Hey Zack,
Thanks for putting something like this together. I found it very helpful in dealing with some of my own unpleasant thoughts and incorrect self beliefes.
Here are some corrections that you can make to improve the site.
1. Style it a little nicer. Just throw on a coat of CSS and you'll be looking good. 2. give me a way to save out of the steps. 3. The rankings seem off. it was telling me i'd be ranked 1709 out of 1928 when i completed it but when I finished it I was only ranked 19 out of 19.
Thanks for putting something like this together. I found it very helpful in dealing with some of my own unpleasant thoughts and incorrect self beliefes.
Here are some corrections that you can make to improve the site.
1. Style it a little nicer. Just throw on a coat of CSS and you'll be looking good. 2. give me a way to save out of the steps. 3. The rankings seem off. it was telling me i'd be ranked 1709 out of 1928 when i completed it but when I finished it I was only ranked 19 out of 19.
I was reluctant to sign up because I suspected you would be asking for my credit card details. If it is free to register then you should mention that.
Eliminating negative thoughts is unlikely to make you happier. The world is a complicated place. The appropriate response to problems is sober assessment, not positivity.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/10/books/excerpt-bright-sided...
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/10/books/excerpt-bright-sided...
Sonja Lyubomirsky (among many others) would disagree with you (PhD, Stanford, A.B. Harvard, Summa cum laude). Check out these peer-reviewed papers for some evidence http://www.faculty.ucr.edu/~sonja/papers.html
What good is living in a pessimistic world? In some cases, like finances and life-threatening situations, erring on the side of pessimism is probably the best approach (though it's definitely debatable; for example, check out the New Yorker article on cancer treatment and hospice care that was posted earlier, and please do note the results in stopping treatment inexplicably extending prognosis in cases of certain carcinomas).
Anyway, the site is not designed to turn you into a cheery moron. It's designed to help you stop thinking false, incorrect, and negative thoughts, by showing you irrational distortions you're automatically invoking (out of habit).
The solution, my friend, is not dogmatism - the solution is not an all-out rejection or embracement of positive psychology. Instead, the solution lies in critical thinking and honest evaluation.
What good is living in a pessimistic world? In some cases, like finances and life-threatening situations, erring on the side of pessimism is probably the best approach (though it's definitely debatable; for example, check out the New Yorker article on cancer treatment and hospice care that was posted earlier, and please do note the results in stopping treatment inexplicably extending prognosis in cases of certain carcinomas).
Anyway, the site is not designed to turn you into a cheery moron. It's designed to help you stop thinking false, incorrect, and negative thoughts, by showing you irrational distortions you're automatically invoking (out of habit).
The solution, my friend, is not dogmatism - the solution is not an all-out rejection or embracement of positive psychology. Instead, the solution lies in critical thinking and honest evaluation.
Peer review and publication are not what make science what it is. Positive psychology is not science. Insisting on a particular epistemology is not dogmatism.
Why is positive psychology not a science? It could easily be considered a subset of ethology.
With such a simple registration form, why not just include it on the page?
Also options for OpenID, Facebook Connect, etc would be great as it would reduce the need for me to worry about one more username and password.
Less Worry only produces Greater Happiness.
Also options for OpenID, Facebook Connect, etc would be great as it would reduce the need for me to worry about one more username and password.
Less Worry only produces Greater Happiness.
The negative thoughts I looked at seemed to lend themselves to more than three of the distortions. Could we be allowed to select as few/many as seems appropriate? That would actually be less effort than having to choose the best three of five that seem to fit.
Er, bug report: you can login without a username or password. By clicking 'Log In'
Yeah, but after reading your bug report it turned out to be a feature for me. Because there's no way I'm registering for an app if I have no idea what it does. Thanks Zack, this is a brilliant idea. Now just listen to the other comments about how your front page should give an idea of the mechanics of your app.
I think someone manually POSTed to my registration form and created an account with a ''/'' combination. Good thing I have input sanitization in my MySQL or the DB could be dead by now. Anyway, I deleted the account and added some server-side sanity checks.. nice observation
I tried the demo but after 2-3 steps it said I was still at step 1 of 7. When I tried to refresh to see if that was accurate I was told I had already checked out the demo and to register.
Thanks for the feedback. The demo mode is a two part process:
A) 1-2-3
and then ...
B) 1-2-3-4-5-6-7
I have temporarily disabled demo mode for now, (to encourage people to simply register accounts to check out the community features), but thank you - I can totally understand why this would be frustrating
A) 1-2-3
and then ...
B) 1-2-3-4-5-6-7
I have temporarily disabled demo mode for now, (to encourage people to simply register accounts to check out the community features), but thank you - I can totally understand why this would be frustrating
Modal dialog boxes make me sad/depressed/angry.
Thanks, feedback noted. In today's instant click -> results environment, a popup that doesn't yield gratifying change would totally cause frustration build up. I'll work on eliminating all of them ... :)
Argh, just went through the full seven step program and the "I'm done!" button isn't responding!
I'm feeling frustrated ;)
I'm feeling frustrated ;)
Ahh, found the bug. A bunch of blank space in TextMate caused a foreign character to appear in the source. Thanks!
can someone please explain the purpose of this application? the demo isn't working and I don't want to register when I don't know what the website is suppose to do.
Kind of frustrating reading 10 comments and still having no clue what it does.
Kind of frustrating reading 10 comments and still having no clue what it does.
Although it is 100% my responsibility to explain the site to you, it really only takes 20 seconds to fill out the 3-field registration form. (How could I make the brevity of experience more clear?)
Anyway, the idea of the site is that you list a negative experience that you had, and then you list some of your thoughts about it, and then the site helps you find distortions in your thinking in order to shift you to a more balanced and positive feeling in your mind and body
Anyway, the idea of the site is that you list a negative experience that you had, and then you list some of your thoughts about it, and then the site helps you find distortions in your thinking in order to shift you to a more balanced and positive feeling in your mind and body
It's not just a question of the amount of time it takes to fill out a registration form. It's the added mental overhead of adding yet another website that has my email and/or personal information.
Furthermore, (and I mean this in the nicest possible way) in the context of this website (with no design and no information about what it actually does), you have zero credibility in my book. So I'm sorry, but no. If you cannot take 5-10 minutes to add a paragraph or two to the site about what it actually does, then I cannot take 20 seconds to register for the site in order to try to figure it out myself.
EDIT: I realize you've sort of explained it now in this thread, but the point I'm trying to get across is that this is the thought process your typical visitor is going through.
Furthermore, (and I mean this in the nicest possible way) in the context of this website (with no design and no information about what it actually does), you have zero credibility in my book. So I'm sorry, but no. If you cannot take 5-10 minutes to add a paragraph or two to the site about what it actually does, then I cannot take 20 seconds to register for the site in order to try to figure it out myself.
EDIT: I realize you've sort of explained it now in this thread, but the point I'm trying to get across is that this is the thought process your typical visitor is going through.
I agree with you 100%. I'm redesigning the page.
I jsut tried to review someone else's thoughts (which were about how the site design didn't display properly in the browser).
Unfortunately it would not let me submit the page. Using Chrome btw.
Unfortunately it would not let me submit the page. Using Chrome btw.
Thanks. I fixed the bug - I was failing to json_encode the string.
The user's thoughts were amusing, though I did design for an 800x600 display, which I thought to be pretty standard today.
The user's thoughts were amusing, though I did design for an 800x600 display, which I thought to be pretty standard today.