So a little while ago I mentioned a new site named On10. I didn’t know what it was at the time, but I was assured by Erik and Adam that it would be cool.

And then it was released and I have to admit, I was not blown away. In truth, I was a bit confused. It looked to me like Channel 9, but highlighting the use of Microsoft technology outside of Microsoft.

But this channel 9 video sheds some light on the site and I am impressed. Not so much with what the site is itself, that may take time to grow on me, but what is going on under the hood.

Some interesting points:

  • First of all, their site validates as XHTML Transitional. Good job guys, as the Mix06 site did not validate.
  • Judicious use of AJAX to provide a rich experience.
  • The site works fine with a rich experience in Safari, IE, and Firefox.
  • You can add comments next to a video while the video continues playing.
  • Hackable URLs. Ex… http://on10.net/people/haacked/
  • Trackbacks are treated as first class comments. So they are free with their traffic. I hope their spam filter is strong.
  • XBox Live integration via you can select your XBox Live avatar as your On10 avatar.

All in all, On10 is an “enthusiast” site that looks to participate in and give back to the community.