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I just imagined a SO for the medicine field, I'll read it everyday!, imagine a doctor asking for help to another doctor?, and not only that, a doctor asking for feedback on a research... wow
The reason StackOverflow works is that computers work based on their code, and so a certain compiler will interpret C# code in a certain predictable way, so the people answering the questions don't have to be anywhere near you. And they are able to answer in a relevant way. The same is not true for other fields.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Was Kevin Rose known (on a PG level) before Digg?? I would say no.
He sheepishly reviewed his company on the geek-dense Screensavers program on TechTv (now Attack of the Show, I think, on G4).
The amount of time spent in front of a computer with an internet connection in a working day would be the key to success of such a site. It would probably have higher traction among, say, graphical designers than medical staff.
Are you famous in your field? No? Then it won't work. HN works because PG is here. Reddit worked because PG was there to help it start. Digg works because Kevin Rose is there. StackOverflow works because Joel and Jeff are there. Unless you've got a large audience to toss at the project on day one, expect a long, hard slog.
/. stumble upon livejournal etc etc
Fame makes it a lot easier, but you aren't doomed to failure if you aren't famous. If you have the dollars to do good marketing then I think it would be easy to make it work.
Are you famous in your field? No? Then it won't work. HN works because PG is here. Reddit worked because PG was there to help it start. Digg works because Kevin Rose is there. StackOverflow works because Joel and Jeff are there. Unless you've got a large audience to toss at the project on day one, expect a long, hard slog.
What you need are credentials - doesn't necessarily need to be fame. Admittedly -- It's probably much harder, but you could demonstrate credentials through some other means.
Are you famous in your field? No? Then it won't work. HN works because PG is here. Reddit worked because PG was there to help it start. Digg works because Kevin Rose is there. StackOverflow works because Joel and Jeff are there. Unless you've got a large audience to toss at the project on day one, expect a long, hard slog.
Mountain biking has a solid fan base, worldwide, and the guys that are into it aren't afraid of spending several thousand on a bike, plus all the bits and pieces that go with it. They're also generally young, single and male, which dovetails nicely with an internet demographic. After all, you can't go out at night. That means there's ad dollar to be made. There's also a vast amount of technical know-how that goes into the sport, both from a how-to setup your bike, how-to do particular techniques, and where to go. A lot of this is currently buried in forums with crappy interfaces and broken searches.
A niche area like this isn't going to get you bought for 10 million, but a couple of talented guys could make a nice living doing something they love, which isn't to be sneezed at.
There are so many other niches that spring to mind crying out for a better problem-solving model than forum postings, which is really what SO is. It's true that Yahoo answers could enter any of these markets, but with branding and endorsements, a dedicated site would outstrip Yahoo answers without much trouble.