Wheat and Chaff

The other day I decided to replace a leaking saddle valve that is used to divert water to my central humidifier (a device I had never even heard of before I moved to this arid clime). Replacing a saddle valve is a simple task, and when I completed it - without use of instructions - I opened the valve only to discover that the new one leaked worse than the old.

So what did I do? I went online. I Googled my way to two or three websites that had instructions for installing a saddle valve. All three of them focused on new installations rather than replacement, and none of them addressed my specific problem.

Next stop: YouTube. Sure enough, my very first hit was a video discussing how to install a saddle valve. Along the way the host described every part involved, and why that part is important. Although he didn't talk about leaking valves specifically, his explanation and demonstration of the brass insert and plastic compression ring made me realize that my problem very likely lies with the compression ring in the valve I purchased. In short, this video was by far the most useful resource I found.

When I finished watching the video I looked over at some of the related videos that YouTube had selected for me. A lot of junk, to be sure, but the fact remains that I found the useful content first. That's part of the beauty of YouTube - there is a small amount of very useful content intermingled with a lot of less-than-useful stuff, but the valuable content always rises to the top. The process of rating content enables everyone to find the useful content they need while still making the purely entertaining content readily available as well.

There is a lesson here. As a site's volume of content grows, having a rating system becomes increasingly important for helping the users separate the wheat from the chaff.