Are Tag Clouds Useful?
In theory, I like the concept of tag clouds. They do a nice job showing the relative popularity of topics and they're more interesting than bulleted lists. But I've never actually used a tag cloud as a research or linking tool, nor can I think of any reason to use one by itself.I know some folks are into tag clouds because I've got a couple Swicki apps (see image) on my sites and I see that people click through. But is there any practical application for these things? Do other people find them useful?
To me, the value of a tag cloud lies in its ability to reflect connections and information. But rather than cram information into one format, I'd prefer a "relationship widget" that reorganizes information in a variety of ways (bulleted lists, ranking lists, tag clouds, etc.).
In the academic world, programs like Inspiration let students change data to suit their learning styles. Wouldn't it be helpful to apply the same concept with clouds and lists? People could choose the organization style that works best for their way of thinking. If Inspiration Software ever wanted to get into the Web game, they could rework the Inspiration engine into both a full Web app and a scaled widget.
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