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A lot of snarky sniping goes on online, most of which is easily dismissible. Sometimes you have to appreciate some of the snark for its simplicity.
TechCrunch’s MG Siegler got tipped off to a doozy of a Website — Easiertounderstandthanwave.com. It’s worth 5 minutes of your time for a cheap laugh or two.
The Website lets users click a button to vote which is easier to understand — the Google Wave real-time collaboration platform or various topics users suggest via e-mail, from Sarah Palin to subjects like neoclassical economics, the health care reform bill and the Sonnenschein-Mantel-Debreu Theorem.
I don’t even want to look that one up on Wikipedia — I like it when my eyes don’t bleed.
For a less serious example, would you believe that the majority of people believe the Swedish Chef from “The Muppet Show” is easier to understand than Google Wave? No, really:
In case you’re not in on the joke, one of the main criticisms about Google Wave is that it can be as tricky to use the first time or two around.
What, exactly, is Wave? I’ve read people argue that it’s hard to explain. I disagree. Wave rolls the majority of our modern Internet collaboration tools into one sophisticated HTML5-based platform.
It’s e-mail, instant messaging, file sharing, cooperative editing and some modest social networking on one palette. But it’s tough to use at first because when multiple people get on a “wave,” there are several cursors bouncing around the screen, all vying for attention, and maybe even to get work done on one project.
It’s chaos on a collaborative Web page, or collaborative Web page in chaos. Yes, it takes getting used to, especially because you can erase or edit each other’s sentences.
I composed a list of common Wave complaints here, but the major one is that it’s, well, confusing — which is the point of the Easiertounderstandthanwave Website. Siegler said it’s from a Facebook employee.
Figures — they can’t pass up the chance to dig at the less cool big brother they view as passé. And what’s up with that anyway? So many Facebookers came from Google, so it’s kind of weird that they are all about biting the hand that fed them. Of course, most of them weren’t at Google to enjoy the stock options when they were fat, so maybe there is bitterness. Anyway.
I wonder how Wave creators Lars and Jens Rasmussen feel about this. They seem like they have healthy senses of humor.
Anyway, here are a few others to check out. Then go to the site and cast your votes on what is easier than Google Wave. Also, e-mail the site to suggest other topics.