Digg launches labs site

Social news phenomenon Digg has launched a site where users can test new features. 

Digg Labs, similar to Google Labs, offers early access to functions in development. 

Two test applications currently available, Stack and Swarm, are designed to give users a broader view of content on the main Digg site. 

'Stack' gives a visual representation of popular stories. Each vote, or Digg, for a story is represented by a block falling from the top of the screen. These blocks stack up at the bottom, showing the popularity of various stories.

'Swarm' shows stories as circles which expand as more people vote for the item. As users move around the site voting on items, their activity can be seen moving from circle to circle.

A note on the Digg blog says: "You might see enormous diggers moving quickly from story to story; those seem to be people digging without taking the time to read stories. " 

The current projects were created in association with Stamen Design. A public API is in development which will allow other users to create applications based on Digg data.

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