I created a social network. Think Facebook + Yahoo Answers + Yelp

[VenalTech]

My social network is www.talkburst.com - keep in mind it is in an Alpha phase right now, which means it's still under development and testing.

It is similar to Facebook except you don't create your own profile, people who know you do, and then anyone who stumbles upon it can "review" you; At the same time, you are creating profiles of people you know. There's an interesting Digg/Reddit-style voting system too. You can ignore the gossip/hateful reviews, I'm going to be filtering childish/defamatory reviews out soon. The site isn't intended to slander other people, just a bunch of immature high school kids got a hold of it :)

The site also allows you to review businesses (like Yelp) but that feature hasn't been released yet. It also has a question/answer area of the site called TalkBurst Answers, which is similar to Yahoo Answers.

You'll notice a badge reward system and an experience points system in place too, so top members are recognized and gain a little 'bling' for their effort.

I'm looking for some core members who would like to contribute to expand the site to different areas of the USA. I also need some core members to expand the Answers section. If you think this is a website that you would love to work with, I am willing to give you founder's shares in the company in exchange for your help growing it.

Sign up for an account, use the site to get familiar with it, and write in this thread or send me a private message about why you would be good for this. Any feedback is also appreciated!

[seanstevens]

It is an interesting idea and probably one that could do well.. you will have to be very careful and moderate tightly though as some of the comments (as you say, clearly by people just messing around) could land you in big trouble with the law. As seen recently, owners of such networks are being held to task on any slanderous comments posted on their sites.

Best of luck with it.

[VenalTech]

It is an interesting idea and probably one that could do well.. you will have to be very careful and moderate tightly though as some of the comments (as you say, clearly by people just messing around) could land you in big trouble with the law. As seen recently, owners of such networks are being held to task on any slanderous comments posted on their sites.

Best of luck with it.

In the US, users of such sites are liable for what they write, not the service provider. It's called DMCA Safe Harbor.

Once it is more popular, I think a Craigslist-style moderation could do well.

[Fergal]

Welcome back VenalTech. It's an interesting concept for a site and one that could prove to be very popular. As has already been suggested the site is very much open to abuse and to bullying of others. The domain name is great, very memorable and appropriate to the nature of your site.


In the US, users of such sites are liable for what they write, not the service provider...

I wouldn't be overly confident in that one. Didn't Twitter recently get fined because one of their users pretended to be someone else and misrepresented that person? Three Google executives recently got suspended jail sentences, resulting from video content uploaded by a Google user. It's not uncommon for US hosts to take down a client's site because of complaints they receive regarding the content on the site.

If your site provides a platform for people to post derogatory and defamatory remarks on organisations and other individuals, you will come under pressure (probably including legal pressure) to remove that content and make amends for the damage caused.

Should a major corporation take offence at what is being posted about them on your site, they may come down on you very hard, with their massive legal resources. It will be very difficult to combat this kind of pressure, even if you are within the law. Unless of course, you have a legal budget equivalent to theirs.

[gtt]

That's just commendable of you to come up with something like this, VenalTech. We all know that entering and crossing in a field where the competition between all of these social media networks around IM world is very rigid, so good luck with your project. Hope this will work out good for both ends.

I like the simplicity of the site.

Keep us posted with your project :-)

Regards all.
--Gerry