Tuesday, April 24, 2007

It'll never work...

Just read an overview of web "beams" by David Galernter, a Yale prof of computer science. The idea is to provide a customized beam of info that is only relevant to you or your group, from cradle to grave (well, at least from somewhere in the past into the future). Your documents and pages would be served up as a parade from past to future. Your PC would only serve to view this info, not store it. You could access it anywhere. The info would be safe from hackers and eavesdroppers. The idea builds on another web 3.0 idea called "Lifestreams."
Nice idea, but it will never work. The idea is to have some structure to the info on the web, and to make it feel as if you control it so you feel empowered. The technology would enable these things, but they would have to be used and directed properly to work. And that is the problem. Right now the web is built from the bottom up, which is messy but effective. To lose that would be to create a directorship (awfully close to dictatership for me). I don't see people buying into this.
When Windows was being developed, there was lots of competition. IBM's OS/2 was just one other alternative. Windows won because it put a messy but effective interface on top of current simple computers and operating systems. The internet and the web both work this way.
After working in the IT industry for a long time, as well as knowing human nature, I think that people will look for the next effective, simple answer or improvement and to hell with this new control scheme.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Submitted to 400words.com

It's been awhile since my last post...sorry 'bout that. Been fighting a bug, and busy otherwise with taxes and estate work.
Submitted a story to 400words.com about breakups. Hope Katherine publishes it.
My next plan is to write something for the Writer's Digest short short story contest. They say they get over 8,000 submissions a year so I may be drowned out in the noise, but it gives me something to aim for.
Will post a link to my story if 400words puts it up.