We've been busy plugging away at blinktag.org, but we know there are a few questions out there that people are asking and we'd like to answer a few of them for you.

Hey, isn't this a Fark ripoff?
Yep. A little bit.

For now, at least.

Why the hell would you want to ripoff Fark and be an asshat?
Asshat, eh? Well, let's look at a few things, first. Plastic, Metafilter, SlashDot, Obscure Store and on and on are all somewhat similar. Some of you have your own blogs, those of you who do--how many of those are original? This is just a simple little news aggregator that's dependent upon people's input and is even more fun when people comment.

In essence, all of these things are really extensions of CMS (Content Management Systems), anyway.

And before you get all asshat on me again...

Seriously, this thing is just like Fark.
Let's dial back the clock over a year or so. I sent an email to Drew Curtis, of Drew Curtis' Fark, and asked if he'd mind if I built a Fark-lite-esque thing for my website. No problem, says Drew Curtis--in fact, let him know if there's anything he can do to help.

Sure, Drew Curtis is a busy guy and he probably doesn't remember it, but I've probably got the email on file. Back when I started building blinktag.org, I shot off an email to Drew Curtis again to make sure everything was cool--and surprise!

It was.

I appreciate the many Fehs this can generate. Hell, I'd do it, too.

But there's more that should be said about this--it's not to insinuate that I know Drew Curtis on any personal level or that I'm even trying make it sound like he's saying "hey, go rip me off; that'd be cool" because that's not the case. If you've been around since February 23rd, you'll see that this is changing already, but that a lot of the notions of Fark are within. Don't sweat it; I don't want this to be Fark. Fark-like maybe, but not Fark.

I honestly believe that our audiences are different, but that's me. I've done my best to add new features almost every day since this has been around--and am continuing to make them now as I write this. Anyway, you're welcome to your opinion of blinktag; just make sure to share any advice you have.

Okay, so why not build something original then?
Best question yet. Mostly because I wanted to build this thing. Don't worry, it's going to change. I needed to get the framework figured out and get it tested out and everything--and doing that all in about a week isn't really that small of task, I might add. Yeah, I know, there're much better developers, I shouldn't have used ColdFusion, I shouldn't have slept over at Michael Jackson's when I was 11 and Kajagoogoo will probably never have a comeback.

Sigh.

What else do you have to say for yourself?
Well, I've been unemployed for 5 months and I'm pretty bored at home seeking out freelance work and applying for jobs and Fark is something I've admired and wanted to do something like it--I'm sure a lot of people have thought to themselves, "If I ran Fark, I'd..." and now I'm working on the things that I'd do.

Ultimately, I did this because I could.

I figured out my own way to build things--I'm more of a designer than a developer, so this is a nifty little accomplishment to me. I have had blinktag.org for a few years now and have turned down at least a handful of opportunities to sell it for a profit but always wanted to find something to do with it and I've got all kinds of server space (hosting anyone?).

Who are the moderators here, anyway?
blink
metsfan
SchwaMoney
Shredder