Archive.org and mixed messages

Posted on January 23rd, 2005 by longestnow.
Categories: %a la mod.

 quirks like any other organization; they
have a confusing and complicated website, which has only grown more
confusing since two years ago, when I recall giving up trying to use it
to find out what I wanted to know about their content archives. 
Today I tried to upload some audio file to the site, and found that
their project nomenclautre was as inconsistent and
confusing [was I uploading "live music"?  No.  But that was
the only link I had to follow for information on uploads], and their
changing color schemes and profusion of navbar-like elements as
distracting, as ever…


Joi tried to explain how easy it is to upload content to archive.org :

[once you have created an account on the site and logged in]
just ftp to audio-uploads.archive.org 
[logging in with your email address and password from the website]
mkdir the name of the file without the extension
cd to it
upload it
then go to uploading a file from your
machine to a remote machine using a browser, is neatly handled by the
two-step “Browse…” form with which every Windows user and most web
users are familiar.

So I want to know how this could be allowed to happen?  How can
all of the brilliant people who I know both visit archive.org often,
know its developers and supporters, have excellent design sense… how
can these people let the site slouch around in its current state of
confusion?

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