A few months back I wrote about how I got traffic from CNN and their use of Sphere to link content from blogs to their articles. Well, a recent look at the CNN site shows that they have become even more hip and social - and their social darling is Mixx.com. CNN is not the only traditional media outlet who is getting social with Mixx - the LA Times, New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, and The Weather Channel are part of a growing list who are all mixxing it up.

The difference between Mixx and other social news/bookmarking sites is how users form communities based on topics and create a more personalized experience. The Washington Post recently featured a really nice article on Mixx and its founder, Chris McGill, who took the time to explain the differences between Mixx and its social rivals.

When you visit today’s CNN article on Web use at work and how it can be a good thing, you are presented with multiple opportunities to get social with the article. They have long had the email a friend and print options on their article pages, but now check out the upper right hand corner of a CNN page:

Mixx gets top billing! You can also submit the article to a variety of social bookmarking sites using the Share button, but it is Mixx that stands out from the crowd.

As you read further down the page, you are presented with the social options again:

I also think it is interesting that at this point in the article, the page looks an awful lot like any successful blog page! Notice the tags, the ads by google, the Most Popular tabbed navigation box, and of course the options to get social. Makes you wonder - did blog design emulate the news media or have the news media taken on the best features from the blogosphere? I’m sure it is a bit of both - and I’m sure that the traditional media outlets are consulting with some of the most successful bloggers for input.

So, if Mixx has CNN’s attention, which other social news and social bookmarking sites are worth investing time in? CNN seems to think these are and in this order:

• Mixx
• Digg
• Facebook
• Del.icio.us
• Reddit
• Stumble Upon
• My Space

Yahoo Buzz is getting quite a bit of attention lately and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in the mix soon. Netscape’s Propeller is also hanging in there, but it hasn’t made too many waves as of late.

What are your favorite social news and bookmarking sites? Which ones do you think are here to stay and which ones will get drown out with all the other noise? I’d love to know what you think! And while you are at it, add this to the Mixx!

As a web designer, I am constantly battling with browsers! Something looks great in Firefox and then you go check it in Internet Explorer and WHAM - you look like you have never designed a thing in your life. IE makes me crazy.

Does anyone have a good resource, cheat sheet or what not to help designers work around and avoid IE glitches before they even start developing? If so, please let me know!! I am going out of my mind over here.

And for those of you who don’t fully know the evils of IE and web development, please go read OneNaught’s article on how IE Slows Down Web Development. This pie chart from The Net is Dead is PRICELESS and pretty much sums up my attitude toward IE today.

IE Voodoo picture from OneNaught

By now you all should know how much I love Common Craft’s new media in plain English videos! They really are the best. Here is their latest which is Social Media in Plain English (and it will make you want ice cream afterwards).

Social Media in Plain English from leelefever on Vimeo.

Other Common Craft videos I love:

• Podcasting in Plain English
• RSS in Plain English
• Twitter in Plain English
• Social Bookmarking in Plain English
• Blogs in Plain English