StumbleUpon, the discovery engine that finds and recommends web content to users, just unveiled a fresh new look with a revamped site design, new logo, streamlined StumbleBar, a deeper integration of the Explore Box and the availability of Channels for everyone.

“Why redesign the experience?  Honestly, a lot of it was driven by what you’ve been telling us.  When we talk to members like you about what you love most about StumbleUpon, we’ve heard that Stumbling is an adventure: a journey that entertains, informs and inspires along the way,” wrote StumbleUpon CEO and founder Garett Camp.  “So we wanted to bring that sense of adventure to our site with more visuals and a streamlined design that enable you to engage more deeply with the great content that is at the core of Stumbling.”

Searching is made easier with the integration of the Explore Box with the StumbleBar.  You can be as specific as you want went looking for things in the web.  And with the Channels, ‘Stumbling’ into anything on the web is so much easier as you are ‘following’ or ‘subscribing’ to a particular topic or category of interest.  It can be you favorite brand of clothes, a favorite TV program, an actor, almost anything on the web has its own Channel.  Choose from more than 250 Channels like Audi, FunnyorDie.com, AOL Inc., Tom Hanks, Magic Johnson, Walt Disney Co.’s ESPN and a lot more.

StumbleUpon has certainly made a stunning comeback these past couple of years, but the industry as a whole is still coming along. Reddit, a social news website where the registered users submit content, in the form of either a link or a text “self” post, had been busy helping people for a cause.  Back in 2010, Reddit users raised money to help out people in Haiti after the destructive and devastating earthquake; a couple of months back, they raised money for Doctors Without Boarders; and now they’re helping out a 3-year old kid named Lucas who has a very rare immune disease that requires a bone marrow transplant.  They needed $50,000 and have already raised over $55,000.  This is not a hoax, the story checks out, and if you want to donate to cute little Lucas and help him have a normal life, check out his page and donate, LoveforLucas.

Digg, the social news website, was reported to be in a bit of a slump, but according to a blog post supported by data from Google Analytics, Digg is actually doing pretty well. The social bookmarking site reported that there is higher engagement from their Facebook fans, as users spend an average of 15 minutes on their site as compared to 10 minutes for other logged in users.  There’s also a 23% increase in daily mobile users since the launch of their revised iOS app with Newsroom integration.  They concluded that in a month, someone types Digg.com in their browser over 13 million times.