Look What I Stumbled Upon

While browsing MakeUseOf.com I found information on two new Internet browsing tools: StumbleUpon and Tumbl.in.

This article explains a bit about how the StumbleUpon technology works. Basically when the user clicks the "Stumble" button and choose a category of interest, and they are re-directed to a random site in one of those catogeries. The user can then click the "Like" or "Dislike" button. When they "like" a webpage, that information is logged into StumbleUpon, as well as key words from the page that help find other relevant websites.

This chart illustrates the process further:

Tumbl.in works pretty much the same way, except that it uses links and content from Twitter.

I see both the advantages and disadvantages of this kind of technology. The advantages are that it could help Internet users find relevant information faster and more efficiently than a typical search engine. It customizes to that individual user's specific interests. However, it could potentially become a big time-waster for the individual user. I don't know about you, but I already spend an unhealthy amount of time surfing the Internet. It seems to me tools like this would only cause Internet surfers to spend even more time online by bringing them so much content that they're interested in. Also, I don't like the thought of my Internet activity being able to be tracked and recorded. That's already happening, as can be seen on social networking sites with advertisements specifically tailored to the individual's interests. I'm not sure I want to give that kind of information away voluntarily, even if it would serve to customize my Internet browsing experience. Plus if the systems were vulnerable to attack, a lot of sensitive and private information about a user could easily be obtained.

I know these sites are only the first of many of this kind of technology that aims to make everything unique to individuals. Right now, I can see it doing more harm than good.