Comments on: Checking in, 16.5 years later http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/ Same old blog, brand new place Tue, 21 May 2013 20:32:53 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.1 By: Doc Searls http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302364 Doc Searls Fri, 13 Jul 2012 18:43:10 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302364 Apologies. I hadn't meant to post that comment. I did write it, but decided I should make a more considered comment later. I was wrong about lots of stuff in that old piece. The remark you quote is one of them. In fact, that's one reason I put it up. And, fwiw, I think big business has already become big government. And our big government is busy colluding and muscling others around the world, through ACTA and worse. The latest is the <a href="https://www.eff.org/issues/tpp" rel="nofollow">Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement</a>, about which <a href="http://internetnz.net.nz/our-work/Openness/Trans-Pacific-Parternship-TPP-agreement" rel="nofollow">InternetNZ in New Zealand is correctly unhappy</a>. There are battles to be fought, and much about the Net and its consequences are dystopic and not all roses. Apologies. I hadn’t meant to post that comment. I did write it, but decided I should make a more considered comment later.

I was wrong about lots of stuff in that old piece. The remark you quote is one of them. In fact, that’s one reason I put it up.

And, fwiw, I think big business has already become big government. And our big government is busy colluding and muscling others around the world, through ACTA and worse. The latest is the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, about which InternetNZ in New Zealand is correctly unhappy.

There are battles to be fought, and much about the Net and its consequences are dystopic and not all roses.

]]> By: Seth Finkelstein http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302312 Seth Finkelstein Fri, 13 Jul 2012 06:00:43 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302312 Sigh. I always feel really stupid replying to something like that, since let's say, in terms of the "power-law" curve, you are where you are, and I am where I am. But ... it's not working. This part is particularly contra-evidence: "Big Business will become as anachronistic as Big Government ...". Heck, these days we're closer to "Big Business will *become* the government". I'm hoping Jonathan Zittrain's forthcoming book on how the Internet affects task employment opens up some space in the pundit-world to say things which are currently socially impermissible (though of course, he has tenure). Maybe he can find some way to allow the reality to at least be acceptably expressed. Sigh. I always feel really stupid replying to something like that, since let’s say, in terms of the “power-law” curve, you are where you are, and I am where I am.

But … it’s not working. This part is particularly contra-evidence: “Big Business will become as anachronistic as Big Government …”. Heck, these days we’re closer to “Big Business will *become* the government”.

I’m hoping Jonathan Zittrain’s forthcoming book on how the Internet affects task employment opens up some space in the pundit-world to say things which are currently socially impermissible (though of course, he has tenure). Maybe he can find some way to allow the reality to at least be acceptably expressed.

]]> By: Doc Searls http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302282 Doc Searls Thu, 12 Jul 2012 18:39:33 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302282 What do you want me to say, Seth? What do you want me to say, Seth?

]]> By: Seth Finkelstein http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302261 Seth Finkelstein Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:10:41 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302261 You claim: "Mutant monsters like Facebook are temporary phenomena" How do you know?There's plenty of reason to think they are entirely obvious and likely to persist, i.e RE-INTERMEDIATION. There is a problem that the following is an unfalsifiability algorithm: 1) It's early days 2) I'm an optimist 3) Look to the long term That is, every negative result can be deflected by appeals to these concepts. Remember the saying - in the long run, we are all dead. You claim: “Mutant monsters like Facebook are temporary phenomena”
How do you know?There’s plenty of reason to think they are entirely obvious and likely to persist, i.e RE-INTERMEDIATION.

There is a problem that the following is an unfalsifiability algorithm:

1) It’s early days
2) I’m an optimist
3) Look to the long term

That is, every negative result can be deflected by appeals to these concepts. Remember the saying – in the long run, we are all dead.

]]> By: Doc Searls reaches into the back catalog for some very deep cuts « Greg Mathes http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302241 Doc Searls reaches into the back catalog for some very deep cuts « Greg Mathes Wed, 11 Jul 2012 22:14:01 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302241 [...] blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/ [...] [...] blogs.law.harvard.edu [...]

]]> By: Dean Landsman http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302156 Dean Landsman Mon, 09 Jul 2012 21:29:55 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302156 Media continues to eat media. In the new language one might say new media subsumes old media. Even when the content itself remains the same. As fate would have it, before I knew you'd re-posted this gem from wayback, I began work today on a post about this very topic. It was in response to a question posed on Facebook, about how one gets one TV -- via Hulu, Roku, or other ... and looking for suggestions. So there must be a reason that we are suddenly all discussing these matters again. Coincidence? Maybe. No doubt, though, that these topics are of import all over again, and have been gaining speed, traction and interest over the past 16 years. Media continues to eat media. In the new language one might say new media subsumes old media. Even when the content itself remains the same.

As fate would have it, before I knew you’d re-posted this gem from wayback, I began work today on a post about this very topic. It was in response to a question posed on Facebook, about how one gets one TV — via Hulu, Roku, or other … and looking for suggestions.

So there must be a reason that we are suddenly all discussing these matters again. Coincidence? Maybe. No doubt, though, that these topics are of import all over again, and have been gaining speed, traction and interest over the past 16 years.

]]> By: Doc Searls http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302138 Doc Searls Mon, 09 Jul 2012 15:18:06 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302138 @windley (Phil Windley) <a href="https://twitter.com/windley/status/222346454327492610" rel="nofollow">tweets</a> "I'm struck with how much of Doc's 1995 vision is yet to be." Me too. But less as time goes on. Without overestimating in the short term we wouldn't underestimate in the long. Even now, seventeen years later, the Net is still new. But what it has loosed in the world cannot be changed. We aren't going back. Not all the way. Mutant monsters like Facebook are temporary phenomena. Inventions like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_Rule_Language" rel="nofollow">Phil's</a> will fulfill the promises of the Net and the Web — of freedom itself — at the personal level first. If we keep looking only at what the Big Boys are doing, we'll miss the real progress. @windley (Phil Windley) tweets “I’m struck with how much of Doc’s 1995 vision is yet to be.” Me too. But less as time goes on. Without overestimating in the short term we wouldn’t underestimate in the long. Even now, seventeen years later, the Net is still new. But what it has loosed in the world cannot be changed. We aren’t going back. Not all the way. Mutant monsters like Facebook are temporary phenomena. Inventions like Phil’s will fulfill the promises of the Net and the Web — of freedom itself — at the personal level first. If we keep looking only at what the Big Boys are doing, we’ll miss the real progress.

]]> By: Kran Edward http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302136 Kran Edward Mon, 09 Jul 2012 13:29:57 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302136 great comparison and historical analysis, but its entirety true that in this time of rapidly changing technology and competition "Why bomb your enemy when you can get him on the phone and do business with him?" great comparison and historical analysis, but its entirety true that in this time of rapidly changing technology and competition “Why bomb your enemy when you can get him on the phone and do business with him?”

]]> By: Viktoria Michaelis http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302098 Viktoria Michaelis Sun, 08 Jul 2012 11:06:38 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302098 I wonder how many others are still blogging, those who were there at the start. I am a latecomer to the whole, but love the history and the original ideas even if, as with a good, original sci-fi story, the reality has taken leaps and bounds beyond what everyone thought could be. I wonder how many others are still blogging, those who were there at the start. I am a latecomer to the whole, but love the history and the original ideas even if, as with a good, original sci-fi story, the reality has taken leaps and bounds beyond what everyone thought could be.

]]> By: Link Resource # 61 : Jul 01 – Jul 09 « Dactylonomy of Web Resource http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/2012/07/06/checking-in-16-5-years-later/comment-page-1/#comment-302076 Link Resource # 61 : Jul 01 – Jul 09 « Dactylonomy of Web Resource Sat, 07 Jul 2012 20:50:04 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/?p=5274#comment-302076 [...] Checking in, 16.5 years later [...] [...] Checking in, 16.5 years later [...]

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