{www vs. forums}.anandtech.com

SoulAssassin

Diamond Member
Feb 1, 2001
6,135
2
0
I haven't read an article there for years though it was how I found the forums.

Do you think you got granular enough w the responses? 1/7th wtf? ;)
 

jfall

Diamond Member
Oct 31, 2000
5,975
2
0
I rarely ever read the articles unless I'm shopping for a new computer (which is rare these days)
 

Demon-Xanth

Lifer
Feb 15, 2000
20,551
2
81
I read them, and still haven't figured out why the images don't show up for me at work. They work fine at home.
 

Chronoshock

Diamond Member
Jul 6, 2004
4,860
1
81
I check the main site ~2 times a day since they don't update that many times per day. I have ATOT constantly open since it changes every minute
 

grohl

Platinum Member
Jun 27, 2004
2,849
0
76
I can keep up with hardware stuff just as easily by browsing the forums as opposed to waiting for an article.

Prob check out what new hardware reviews there are 1x/wk.
 

silverpig

Lifer
Jul 29, 2001
27,703
11
81
Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
I haven't read an article there for years though it was how I found the forums.

Do you think you got granular enough w the responses? 1/7th wtf? ;)

I figured people might check forums every day, and the www once a week. Although I guess I should have made it so that 1/7th wasn't in between two of the choices...
 

GTaudiophile

Lifer
Oct 24, 2000
29,767
32
81
I still visit the front page at least once daily, if not more, and I often read an article.

The articles are still pretty decent, though Anandtech may have allowed itself to slip from being "the source" to being the "second or third source".

Why might this be so?

1) Bias. The pro-Intel/pro-nVidia bias of anandtech.com pisses off people who are loyal to DAAMIT, though DAAMIT really hasn't given the world something to be proud about as of late, but the bias here as been evident for quite some time IMO. I think there quite a few people who honestly believe that nVidia/Intel pay good money to sites like these to see that the reviews are positive.

2) Editing. Anandtech badly needs better editors for spelling and grammar. And I mean non-techy people (girls?) who know how to proof read. I know articles are sometimes rushed to beat the competition, but poorly written content only screams of being unprofessional. Quality before quantity perhaps?

3) Write what your audience wants to read. Sometimes this is obvious like when a new videocard or overly-hyped Apple product comes out, but what about the in-between times? Poll your audience via the front page on what should appear next if you do not know. People most often use Anandtech as a research tool before making (enthusiast) purchases, so an emphasis on shoot-outs or comparisons should be a high priority. What about a "long-term" test report like you find on Edmunds? How is that power supply doing after 6 or 12 or 18 months? As any business must do every so often, conduct a SWAT anaylsis. Find out what you do best and concentrate on that.

4) Anand himself. I think his empty blog is proof that he plays less and less of a role of managing the baby he himself created. This site is a business and needs leadership. I know he writes and article from time to time, but still. His name is on the site and there has to be a day-to-day role for him.
 

Uppsala9496

Diamond Member
Nov 2, 2001
5,272
19
81
I used to read the articles until this fiasco took place:

March 14 post about a mATX review

And then there was this "quick roundup" pending the final review

After that fiasco, I really don't have any desire to look at the articles. I'm sure I will glance at them now and again, but I will take everything I read with a grain of salt.

The article was in the "final phases of the mATX roundup" back in early March, and it still hasn't come out. This is why I look to other sites for reviews on hardware.
 

OVerLoRDI

Diamond Member
Jan 22, 2006
5,490
4
81
I used to read the articles on anandtech all the time, but since I discovered ATOT I've started reading anandtech less and less. Maybe you should start a poll about this outside of ATOT, I bet the people who spend loads of time in the video forums read anandtech more than us ATOTers.
 

lozina

Lifer
Sep 10, 2001
11,711
8
81
excuse me as I break out my graphing calculator to compute which is the proper poll option for my scenario...
 

Journer

Banned
Jun 30, 2005
4,355
0
0
i use the main website to get to the forums so ic an see if there are any new articles. if it looks interesting ill read it
 

nakedfrog

No Lifer
Apr 3, 2001
59,429
14,097
136
I only look at hardware reviews when I'm looking at making a hardware purchase.
 

Viper GTS

Lifer
Oct 13, 1999
38,107
433
136
Originally posted by: GTaudiophile
I still visit the front page at least once daily, if not more, and I often read an article.

The articles are still pretty decent, though Anandtech may have allowed itself to slip from being "the source" to being the "second or third source".

Why might this be so?

1) Bias. The pro-Intel/pro-nVidia bias of anandtech.com pisses off people who are loyal to DAAMIT, though DAAMIT really hasn't given the world something to be proud about as of late, but the bias here as been evident for quite some time IMO. I think there quite a few people who honestly believe that nVidia/Intel pay good money to sites like these to see that the reviews are positive.

There were plenty of "WTF is Intel doing?" articles when NetBurst was around, if AMD or ATI could put out something that actually beats Intel/Nvidia then maybe this would have merit.

2) Editing. Anandtech badly needs better editors for spelling and grammar. And I mean non-techy people (girls?) who know how to proof read. I know articles are sometimes rushed to beat the competition, but poorly written content only screams of being unprofessional. Quality before quantity perhaps?

Completely agree here, the "writers" they have these days are absolutely terrible. Unfortunately knowledge of PC hardware does not translate into writing about PC hardware, but a writer with no knowledge and a stack of benchmarks would produce something equally terrible. An editing team might go a long ways towards fixing this.

3) Write what your audience wants to read. Sometimes this is obvious like when a new videocard or overly-hyped Apple product comes out, but what about the in-between times? Poll your audience via the front page on what should appear next if you do not know. People most often use Anandtech as a research tool before making (enthusiast) purchases, so an emphasis on shoot-outs or comparisons should be a high priority. What about a "long-term" test report like you find on Edmunds? How is that power supply doing after 6 or 12 or 18 months? As any business must do every so often, conduct a SWAT anaylsis. Find out what you do best and concentrate on that.

Always good.

4) Anand himself. I think his empty blog is proof that he plays less and less of a role of managing the baby he himself created. This site is a business and needs leadership. I know he writes and article from time to time, but still. His name is on the site and there has to be a day-to-day role for him.

He typically shows up for the major reviews - New architectures, etc. I read his articles completely.

I still do read most of the articles (or at least skim them quickly). Lots of valuable information, it just could be presented much better.

Viper GTS
 

oogabooga

Diamond Member
Jan 14, 2003
7,806
3
81
I only end up on the front page when I accidentally click on a link in the forums that takes me there.

But when I'm there I read the articles.