However, flipping through (and drooling over) endless images requires one to click through several pages, which makes sense. On the bottom of the first page, you get a very clear link to read more on the next page:

More stuff on the next page? Awesome, I like more stuff so I will click and continue my journey. And at the bottom of the second page:

Even more stuff, you say?! Onwards we go. And then:

Lots more stuff? Why yes, I would like to see lots more stuff. On page number four, they begin presenting the standard navigation links:

Augh! Why Uncrate, why?

When it comes to page navigation, the Previous-Next duo is confusing when they’re not supported by any other indicators. On a blog, I always naturally associate “Previous” with posts from a previous time or day. However, the navigation rarely works this way, so I end up going back and forth between pages multiple times.

Now, I’m not saying this terminology should be banished forever – after all, I may be the only odd person who gets confused by this. There are better ways to provide helpful indicators:

As you can see, Mashable also includes page numbers so you won’t/can’t mistake “Previous” as a chronological term.

Dear Internets, please stop using “Previous” and “Next” as your sole navigation signals. Either support them with better clues, or stick to something like “Older” and “Newer”. Thank you.

Pinterest is a nicely packaged solution to a common problem I’ve had in the past with bookmarking. After I bookmark a page in my browser or on Evernote, I very rarely actually re-visit these pages. Maybe they’re really not as interesting as I initially thought, or the concept of “out of sight, out of mind” applies. Pinterest takes the simple, traditional idea of a pin board (when have I ever actually used one in real life? Maybe once, or twice, in the 90′s) and translates it to fit our digital lifestyles on the intarwebz.

Historically, Tumblr has been the platform of choice for visual-centric niches – namely, anything related to design or fashion. Pinterest’s method of collating “pinned” images in sets and collections makes it so much easier to browse through chunks of them without needing to scroll forever or press “next 5″ x 100. The ability to create different board is fantastic for those of us who are OCD about organization :) And overall, it’s a great place to discover new ideas and find inspiration, although the popular ones do get repeated quite often.

One of my favorite aspects of individual pin pages is that they reference 1. who you repinned from (if applicable) and 2. the original source of the image. No more clicking through seemingly endless trails of reblogs a la Tumblr, only to arrive at the original post and find that there’s no source listed /fail

Naturally, there’s still plenty of room for improvement – for example, it’s difficult to find new people to follow. While they provide suggestions when you sign up based on the list of interests you provide, it’s not very easy to find new people after that. A separate recommendations section based on pins that you’ve liked/repinned or people you already follow would be helpful in this instance.

It’ll be interesting to see how brands utilize this service – it’d be silly for them to not take advantage of targeting such a concentrated group of users with overlapping interests in design, decoration, crafts, cooking, traveling… and the list could go on and on.

TL;DR: Pinterest has won me over – I’m a fan!

It’s now time for me to stuff myself with Chinese Foreign Policy goodness. Stay tuned for more blog posts on media, tech, and of course, some randomness here and there.