Every good website builder wants to ensure that his or her website is accessible and effectively gets the message out across the various browser and social media platforms. Whatever you want to call them: add-ons, plug-ins, extensions, there are literally hundreds of these types of components available for the different web browsers. However, almost all the web browsers lack some type of social integration in the least.
RockMelt's approach is more of an inclusive one in that it includes your Facebook profile directly in your browsing experience. This is a sharp turn from the way browser developers were going about it by allowing companies and the public to create their own add-ons and extensions. A number of these extensions work real well, while a majority of them are not that great.
Web users are constantly trying to find a delicate balance between browser functionality and performance. You don't want to overload yourself with unnecessary browser additions. For example, Firefox and its add-on strategy made it a valuable browser. But, it has also slowed it down and has lost some of its share in the market.
RockMelt achieves what the others don't by loading a Facebook application each time the browser is loaded. It is this strategy that powers the browser's social elements. With only one click, you can see who's online, what's new in your newsfeed, update your status, tweet, or read your RSS feeds.
With the fully integrated Facebook/browser approach, there is also a downside. Since it's an all in one browser, there are still some things that need to be ironed out as far as functionality working across all platforms. Some functions don't show up on some systems while the stability due to the Facebook add-on can be a question. But, RockMelt when it works just might be what we are waiting for.
It's a pretty savvy approach that not many have emulated and succeeded at. The Twitter API on the browser bar is pretty cool. It allows you to add multiple Twitter accounts, tweet to various accounts, and update followers. It is totally integrated. Essentially, you see your Twitter screen in the browser; allowing you to directly message people, add lists, send and receive direct messages, etc.
How RockMelt integrates Twitter and Facebook into its browser experience is very interesting and very well thought out. It is not obtrusive and you have the options of placing buttons where you want and making them big or small.
Following the open source browser named Chromium from Google, RockMelt is intent on being the browser of choice in the social media age.
There have been other browsers out there that have attempted to integrate a user's surfing experience with social media; some of them dating as far back as 2005 (A LONG time ago).
The point that this article is attempting to make is that you should think of RockMelt as a one stop shop for all Social Media needs of your free website. There are people out there that spend hours on Facebook (you may be one of them) while simultaneously tweeting, commenting on articles, sharing events with friends, checking out photos of their nephew living abroad and so on. For those types it will not take long to feel like RockMelt is a part of their being.
This might seem overwhelming to some, but RockMelt has a pretty nifty way of personalizing your experience and removing some of the noise you see in the browser. For example, there is an entire column of Facebook friends that appears on the left hand side. Items like these can be rather easily hidden in no time.
Sure. There are other choices out there. But, what RockMelt is trying to do is revolutionary as it strives to create a new experience in web browsing in a social manner. It's entirely up to you if it's something worthwhile to give a shot.
