It is a wiki-style repository containing summaries of popular news and information articles.
Have you ever came across what seemed like a very interesting article but just didn’t have time to read it in full, only to bookmark it away and never return to it? What if you could get the most important bits of information out of the article without having to spend the time reading it? Let’s face it: with the rise of social bookmarking there is more great content out there than we can possibly consume and it is getting worse. Why lose out on valuable information simply because you have other more important priorities?
The Answer
We created Synopit to be the answer to this problem. It is a wiki-style repository containing summaries of popular news and information articles. Anyone can contribute to it and everyone can benefit from it. The main focus is ease of use. By installing the Synopit bookmarklet you can quickly view the synopsis of an article or contribute one if none exists. By contributing, you’re not only helping others but by encapsulating an article into main points you engage the content more fully (not to mention you get the credit).
Synopit isn’t just for text based content, either. Video clips can often times be lengthy and the environment in which a user is viewing them may not be ideal. Videos can be “Synopped” as well so that users can get the basic gist and main points of a video clip without having to watch the video at a set pace. The idea is the quick absorption of a large amount of valuable information. Because Synopit is a wiki, if users find that a synopsis is lacking or has bias then they can easily create a revision to fix the problems. This ensures that every synopsis is accurate and impartial.
The Controversy
Much like Cliffs Notes, Synopit is sure to have its critics. Purists may recoil at the thought of people flippantly reading the summary of an article rather than the article itself. Some of the authors are sure to be repulsed as well. We believe, however, that if people can consume more information in a given span of time because of Synopit then they are all the better for it. In fact, we see it as a way to reach a larger audience. For what it’s worth, we hope it makes absorbing information that much easier for people.