Throw away the magic 8 ball

Go to a restaurant, time to order and some of us just can't decide on what to eat. Couldn't it be easier?

High standards, too many options, must have white sauce, etc. Whatever the excuse we usually consult with others before making our decision. Apply that logic and try to make a site out of it. There's no need to flip a coin, shake the 8-ball, rock-paper-scissors or consult your Feng Shui quack. Just head over to Hunch.com instead. A start-up from Caterina Fake, one of the co-founders of Flickr, Hunch simply puts it as - In 10 questions or less, Hunch will offer you a great solution to your problem, concern or dilemma, on hundreds of topics.

I received my invite in my mailbox today and headed over immediately to test out the site. A very simple login later, I managed to set up my profile and start trying out some of the queries. Some funnier than the others like Do I add my boss as a Facebook friend? was answered logically in 3-4 options. The margin was not that great - 57% favoring a yes, so I'll just ignore him for the time being.

Although the example I mentioned is quite lame, funny but lame, the potential for product purchase placement at this site is enormous. That coupled with the concept of crowd sourcing i.e. like Wikipedia, the site can have Twitter like popularity in a short while. The concept is great. The niche is unique. While Google and other search engines will be able to point you in the right direction they usually leave you there to decide by yourself, or go forward accordingly. Hunch on the other hand provides further questions that can improve the end result. What's even better is that Hunch learns from you and adjusts the questions accordingly. Still at its infancy, Hunch has scope to grow. We'll have to wait and see.

Hunch will launch in the coming months, but right now it is slowly sending out invitations to people who request them. Once registered, Hunch will provide you 3 invites to give away. Go sign up and see if your life is made easier.