My two cents about the BR tech sites
Inspired by this post from Rodrigo Ghedin on Manual do Usuário, I’ll provide an overview of my perception of the BR tech scene. I’m not a YouTube guy, so I’ll focus on the blog aspects of each one.
First, I have to say that in my youth, when Carlos Cardoso began to establish himself as the country’s first “Problogger,” I followed various technology sites and engaged with their communities, so I can say I have a lot of expertise with the “nerd herd” in Brazil. The list below summarizes my experience with these sites from the early 2000s until 2018/19 (more or less).
- Tecnoblog: was not a welcoming environment, despite having good articles. Upon closer examination with more maturity, I realize Mobilon is a subpar editor, and Paulo Higa has always been arrogant and pretentious. There was no gratuitous violence, but these were toxic environments.
- MeioBit: always fell short, with writers like Nick Ellis and Gogoni. Over time, everyone followed Carlos Cardoso’s lead, becoming aggressive and spoiled.
- Canaltech: was never strictly a technology site, always focusing on reviews and buying recommendations. I don’t believe it lost this approach; it just became more aggressive in that regard.
- Olhar Digital is a confusing site based on clippings and comparisons. Belonging to a large publisher (Abril/UOL Tech), it remains as expected.
- Contraditorium: I’m unsure if it still exists, but it was Carlos Cardoso’s bread and butter. I admit it had interesting chronicles about people and technology. However, the aggressive persona, whether a character or not, took over the site long ago, essentially turning it into an AdSense repository.
Note: All these sites had or have their associated “nerd” podcast. For me, this goes beyond quality (they cater to an audience); it’s a matter of maturity. After 35/40 years, one expects more depth and a less frantic pace of reading and consumption. This reflects my relationship with almost all Brazilian internet places (Jovem Nerd, RapaduraCast, B9, Tecnoblog, ½ bit, etc.). Sometimes, we get older and more demanding.
Sometimes, we just get older and more demanding =P
- P