opml 1.0
last updated: 6/5/2003; 10:06:30 PM
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 | The Internet - a very brief (and therefore inaccurate) history |
| Gutenberg printing revolution was about centralized distribution of information |
| Web/Internet is decentralized |
| Tim Berners Lee invents the Web cir: 1990 to share information easily across barriers of computer incompatibility |
| the anti-Tower of Babel |
| hyperlinks are a core feature of the web |
| Highly recommend his book Weaving the Web. |
| Three stage development of Web after creation of HTML protocol (my model so this lacks any real credibility) |
| 1) slowly create servers where information can reside and be pointed to |
| 2) managed hosting sites arise to solve the problem of dealing with managing servers |
| all the user has to do is create content to reside on the server |
| but, even though HTML is "easy", it's still too hard for the average person |
| tools like "Frontpage" emerge; still cumbersome, but workable |
| 3) Weblogs evolve - fast, cheap and easy self-publishing tools |
 | Weblogs - what are they and what do they portend? |
| weblog = website that is easy to put new information on. Latest information goes on top, and eventually information falls off the main page. |
| 7 days worth of stuff on the home page is the norm, but this is not set in stone |
| the key is to have fresh content so people are encouraged to return frequently |
| it's not hard to add content with a weblog |
| basically it's as easy as sending an email |
| Hiler article |
| says weblogs are best understood as "an ecosystem" |
| probably a good model for understanding what's going on |
| can't look at just a few blogs to see what's going on. |
| but something big and important is in fact "going on." |
| fast reporting ala Adam Curry reporting on Pim Fortuyn |
| but it's more than reporting on breaking news |
| opinions & topical discussion take place |
| Instapundit is good example of general political and social commentary; with legal commentary too (since he's a law professor) |
| Volokh conspiracy is also a good example |
| specialty blogs |
| 802.11b blog by Glenn Fleishmann about Wi-Fi and wireless stuff |
| Sam Ruby's blog on software development |
| Jenny Levine's blog on library & tech issues |
| Robert Peyton's blog about cooking and food |
| Marty Schwimmer's blog about Trademark Law |
| Sgt Stryker's discussion of military and defense issues |
| J.D. Lasica's blog about new journalism |
| Phil Windley's discussion of IT issues from perspective of the CIO of Utah |
| personal ruminations of people |
| Tony Pierce's blog is very interesting |
| check NOLA blogs list for New Orleans bloggers |
| lots of these on weblogs.com also (not limited to New Orleans) |
| My early efforts to understand other dimensions |
| What do blogs portend? |
| Hard to say. The ultimate "monkees with typewriters" test. Lots of monkees and lots of typing. No Shakespeare plays yet, but lot's of other interesting stuff. |
| Bottom line: rapidly accelerating growth rate in the amount of information residing on servers that can be pointed to |
| this is key nutrient for the web |
| Information overload on the internet- how do we organize the vast reams of virtual information? |
| Google to the rescue |
| phone number experiment |
| find a blog (i.e. Denise Howell's blog) |
| Treo 300 attorney |
| So exactly how does information get posted to a weblog? |
| demo of post in Radio |
| how to create hyperlinks |
| right-click shortcut |
| How do people point to and access information on weblogs? |
| permalinks |
| search functions |
| comments features |
| Still too much information to surf the web efficiently - so what to do about that? |
| News Aggregators |
| Radio News Aggregator |
| Amphetadesk |
| RSS/XML feeds |
| Shifting information so that it comes to you at your convenience |
| TiVo & PVR's |
| this is going to happen to news information |
| The "Smart Mobs" are coming. |
| what happens with when many people have an always-on pervasively available internet connection? |
| the world will change in dramatic ways |
| PostScript - what effect have weblogs had on me personally? |
| met a lot of interesting new people, by E-mail, by phone and in person |
| learned more about technology & cutting edge events |
| learned to be more open to other viewpoints |
| spent more time writing and thinking about things |
© copyright 2003
by Ernest Svenson.
