So many of you have seen the burst in popularity of a site called Quora. It’s a question and answer site that aims to be the spot on the Internet where people go to find educated questions and answers.
It’s a neat concept, a cross between a more mature Yahoo Answers, a less stuffy Linkedin Q&A, and a questioned based Digg.
So what has brought about near overnight success of a product built by former Facebook employees? Quite simply, the quality of people on the site. Unlike Yahoo answers, where everyone and their grandmother can respond, on Quora you’ll have those people but you will also have a more A-list tech people answering questions as well. CEOs of technology companies have been seen answering questions about their products from everyday people.
The Interface
The interface is a bit overwhelming at first. It’s best to go onto the site and look around and lurk for a bit before you comment and answer questions. There are some great pieces on how to participate as well. There is a Digg-like voting system that allows people to be rewarded for good answers and there is a way to comment on each of the answers that lends itself to further conversations on the topic.
Once you figure out how to navigate the site, the sheer size of the data on the site hits home. There’s a lot of stuff going on here on Quora.
The Concern
The concern of many people is the stickiness of the site. Will people use it for a while, only to get burned out and never return? Will it go the way of Yahoo Answers, with all the spam and inane comments?
Also, people like This Week in Google’s Jeff Jarvis (also of Buzz Machine fame), expressed concern that Quora is just another site where he’ll feel obligation to visit because people will be interacting with him there and expect him to reciprocate.
Many would tell him to just stay off the site, but it’s not that easy, especially when you’re a journalist. I’m sure he feels the need to explore what Quora is all about, but he also knows that the minute he’s on there people will start engaging him. And there’s the problem, it’s another social network for all of us to check and be active on. Do we have the time or energy for it?
Honestly, I can’t tell. I know my usage of the site has dropped dramatically since I first got on there, but that’s probably a good thing. I’ve found that I have something else to do — work.
Also people are starting to realize that the own their data. Some have started to wonder why they would put all this work into a site where their data, as of now, is not exportable and not owned by them. Will this change in the future, maybe, but it’s something to keep in mind.
Yet another issue, which is probably caused by the recent popularity of the site, Quora has a tendency to lag a bit and sometimes hang and force the user to refresh. Now I’m sure they’re fixing this issue, but it’s worth noting.
My hope is that Quora finds some sticking power among the tech elite, because if there is a quality user-base of people-in-the-know then the site will be around for a while.
Your Thoughts
Have you used Quora? What do you think? Will it be around in 6 months… a year? Post your thoughts in the comments below.


Two days ago 












