Yahoo! Mash Preview
With Social Networking becoming such a big market on the internet, it was only a matter of time for internet giants such as Yahoo! to have a go at making their own. Yahoo's attempt is called Mash and is currently in beta stages.
Features
It seems Mash offers the same features as most other social networking sites. The customisation of a users profile is slightly different though. Users are are able to drag and drop features or apps onto their profile, thereby selecting what content they want on. There are many too chose from, blogs, rss feeds, tags are just some. It seems Yahoo! have adopted the right balance between profile customisation and security, the user has control over what features they want on their profile as well as the information in those features.
Another original feature on Mash is the ability for users to edit their friends profiles, this feature can be disabled however. It seems Yahoo have tried to add an element of fun with this feature as it adds that little bit extra to what would otherwise be just another social networking site.
Interface
The thing that strikes you about Mash is how bland looking it is, it seems Yahoo! have gone for the simple to use look and feel, but have undershot it somewhat. Whether this is due to change in the months to come I dont know, however at the moment "bland" and "dull" are the two words I would describe the interface as.
Summary
Ok, I know this preview was very short but right now there isnt a lot else to say, Mash looks like it has a strong foundation for something very good, however because it is still in beta mode it could go either way. Although the interface is easy to use it is extremly bland and boring and something that needs to be built upon if Mash is to become a big success. With that being said I will keep a close eye on it and see what develops. If you want to give Mash a try you will need an invite. You may have some luck looking here
Screenshot of Mash courtesy of TechCrunch
