FitFinder Re-launches As Floxx

Floxx.com, “the new Fitfinder”, went live on January 3 with a host of new features to keep students procrastinating throughout the term. The new social networking site includes a map location feature so that individuals can plot unsuspecting “fitties” letting users see where they are located.

Floxx has hit the ground running with reportedly 6,000 visitors on the first day. Although term doesn’t start for most universities until next week, 1,000 post have already been submitted . One spot located in Derwent Computer room reads: “Male, Brunette hair. [S]exy tall basketball stud, looks lush, [I]’d love to be sellotaped to him.”

Vision’s ex-TV editor and longstanding FitFinder campaigner, Scott Bryan, was delighted at the news: “Oh yeah I am happy about the return of FitFinder. It means that we get to be subtle perverts outside the library from now on. Who wouldn’t like that?”

However third-year Philosophy student Catherine Cooper-White was underwhelmed at the news of the site returning: “Well it’s just a bit weird. Sometimes people are being nice or funny but I just read some and I’d be really freaked it out if someone were writing that kind of thing about me on the internet. Maybe they should have a moderator as it’s just open to a lot of abuse and creepy blokes I guess.”

The change in name to Floxx, came about through the lack of understanding of the term “fit” outside the UK, a blog on the website explains: “Fit in many variations of english doesn’t mean the same sweet sweet attractiveness that most British people know of – it usually means keeping healthy.

“The name Floxx was thought of as we noticed that at certain universities people used FitFinder to choose where they went to study, especially choosing the libraries with the hottest descriptions. This reminded us of flocks of sheep following the crowd and how you could see where these flocks were on each feed. Hence Floxx is a play on the word ‘flocks’.”

The new site came about when Martell was approached by former Dragon’s Den investor Doug Richard through Twitter. The two paired up over the summer working to bring the site live before the start of term.

The Facebook page and Twitter feed have 987 likes and 185 followers respectively. An iPhone app is due to be launched shortly allowing users to add fitties on the go.

A PR spokesperson for Floxx confirmed the site has global aspirations, with international cities and campuses already on the database. Unfortunately this reporter notices a lack of innuendos when it comes to propositions from across the pond, with one post simply stating: “Male, Black hair. Hey babe ;)”

The original FitFinder was launched April 24 last year by then UCL Computer Science undergraduate, Rich Martell. It was an instant success, receiving five million hits and 50,000 posts from 50 universities in only four weeks. However under increasing pressure from universities who feared the website was distracting students from studying during the exam period, UCL fined Martell and threatened further disciplinary action that put his degree at risk, leading to the site being taken down.