h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

What is written here about Syktyvkar might have been true for the soviet period of its history, but absolutely irrelevant for the town which Syktyvkar has developed into over the past 10 years.
The population of the Komi republic has indeed been mostly formed by former prisoners, but Syktyvkar has large and developed high education institutions and technologically advanced industrial companies. I have serious doubts that this development could have been done solely by the inmates of Gulag. Many young specialists from technical universities from all over the country have been invited to work in the town when Syktyvkar forest enterprise was build. Currently the company employs almost 13000 people, most of whom are highly educated technical specialists to support a complicated technological process of the paper production. The company has been acquired by Austrian Mondi Business Paper which heavily invested in the company which resulted in further technological advancements.
The town has been rapidly developing over the last years, lots of new buildings have been erected, and the centre of Syktyvkar gained a modern look and a very nice appearance.
Many new businesses have been started in construction, retail, and forestry industry as well as in consumer goods production.
The quality of life and living standards in Syktyvkar are higher then in much bigger and better knows cities of Russia.
Syktyvkar has a strongly developed sports base and has been a native town of many great athletes -Olympic champions - in cross country skiing like R. Smetanina, N. Bazhkova, and V. Rochev, bendy, basketball, handball; world champion in sambo K. Lakhtionov, in free-style wrestling V. Parshukov, skating champion V. Zazerskiy, boxer V. Balai and many other outstanding athletes.
Syktyvkar is a great place to visit in early spring (March-April) when it is already not cold (around 0C) but still enough snow to go cross country skiing in the one of many skiing bases. In summer when the temperature can reach +30C and it is a great time to observe the great nature of surrounding forests which vary in type allowing to see all varieties of nature typical for that geographical region (believe me, there is more then just boring pine trees).
Night life in Syktyvkar EXISTS! There are many restaurants, bars, pubs, night clubs and a bowling centre.
I grew up in Syktyvkar and spend more than a half of my live in this town, I've also seen many more places in the world, and it hurts me to read articles like that on the web, portraying a very nice small Russian-Komi town like nothing more then just a boring place filled with former convicts.
There is much more about that place. I can confidently state that out of all Russian towns similar in size and location to this one - Syktyvkar is one of the nicest places to visit, where kind and very friendly people live.