Utility is the New Super Poke

People are dropping boredom killing apps on facebook like bad habits. Wait, they are bad habits. Productivity killers. Time thiefs. Just plain silly. So what's happening, is it the death of the app? As a company that's part of the facebook economy, we hope not. In fact, we're seeing the opposite trend. Brands have seen the dust settle and they're jumping in. Not as advertisers but as developers. and they're not interested in poking, or biting, or taking a never-ending quiz, they're focused on utility.

Alley Insider published this post recently, highlighting ten apps that "don't suck." We're pleased that one of our apps, Monster's Job Search Agent was highlighted. Not sucking has never felt so good for us or our clients. As the author points out, the applications should be judged on their true utility to users, not just their install base.

What do you think makes a good application? What questions do you ask yourself before clicking the "Install this Application" button?