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April 28, 2003 Vol.74, no. 14S
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| HOT OR NOT: Is Patrick Shyu’s
matchmaking service a local twist on the original Hot or Not Web
site hot or not? Students who have used the site have given it a
rating of 8 out of 10. |
EECS student
creates site to help Cal students make love connections
Do you want to know if fellow students think you are hot or not? Now
you can by posting your photo on the Cal Hot or Not Web site (www.OCF.Berkeley.EDU/~pshyu/hotornot)
thanks to EECS sophomore Patrick Shyu.
Last year Shyu created Final Distance, the computer-based class scheduling
program that shortens the time and alleviates the hassle of assembling
each semester’s class load. Since then Final Distance (finaldistance.berkeley.edu)
has gotten 41,936 hits. (See full story at www.coe.berkeley.edu/engnews/fall02/9f/Finaldistance.html.)
The success of Final Distance showed Shyu that his efforts can improve
the lives of students and he was inspired to do more. He spent his spring
break putting the Berkeley Hot or Not site online.
“I got the idea for the site after listening to some of my friends
complain about how lonely they were and how hard it is to meet dates,”
says Shyu.
The site, based on the national Hot or Not site, not only gives students
feedback on their looks in both verbal and numerical ways, but also
matches participants who rate each other with top scores of 9 or 10.
Contact information is released only when a match is made.
Since the site went live, shortly after spring break, 2,537 students
have logged on and 109 students have posted photos.
Anyone is welcome to post his or her photos, and it’s easy to do
it, says Shyu.
“So far people have left comments on the site about how they had
gotten lunch dates through the site,” he says.
While a few may view the site as politically incorrect, superficial,
and just plain mean, Shyu says the overall reception has been positive.
Shyu also reserves the right to censor derogatory comments.
One of the images on the Hot or Not site is a snapshot of the Web site
itself. Visitors have rated it an eight.
While the site matches people based on sex appeal, Shyu says it’s
mainly geared to meeting new people and making friends.
“It’s hard to meet people outside of classes. This is a good
way to get to know people you otherwise wouldn’t meet from different
years and majors,” he says.
Shyu says he will post his own photo when his classes end. He welcomes
the anonymous, brutally honest feedback on his appearance. “People
will tell me if I need a haircut or how I can improve my image in their
comments. It’s a good way to get objective information.”
Shyu’s Web site may be a blessing for the shy or stellar entertainment
for the bored. So far Hot or Not is the most popular site on its server.
Shyu has also foolproofed the site from cheating. Each IP address can
cast one vote for each picture. That way the results are far more honest,
he says.
Shyu’s Hot or Not site has an engineer’s touch. Next to each
image is a graphical bar chart that breaks down how many people voted
and what each vote was.
Shyu says his site is not only social and entertaining but also educational.
“This is a good forum for students to learn about themselves and
each other,” he says.
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