Conversations about technology, culture, and the future.
Internet & Platforms
Web platforms, open internet, network effects, identity, and data
- Fights for the Future on Many FrontsJul 10, 2012
One of the things I’ve learned over the past few months is that the fight for the future is being fought on many, many fronts — and these fights take all shapes and sizes, and are constantly shifting and re-forming. Here are a few that are hot this week — each of which will be… Continue reading
- Thinking about FreedomJul 4, 2012
For the past few weeks, I’ve been involved with a community effort to draft a declaration of freedom for the Internet. On Monday, it went live on the web, and is starting to get discussed. It’s been an amazing, fascinating and inspiring year in the internet community. Today, the Verge has a nicely...
- Open source and open knowledgeJul 3, 2012
I spent part of the train ride home today working on a coding project (the Highrise bookmarklet I blogged about wanting on Monday). It’s almost done and I’m excited to start using it. I am not a great programmer, but I like it a lot. I only took one CS course in college. I really… Continue reading
- Automating your way out of bad behaviorJul 2, 2012
As I write this, I’m sitting on the platform at the Back Bay Amtrak station in Boston, waiting for the train to New York. At 9am (6 minutes ago), I got a text message prompting me to write a blog post today. It said “Get your blog on! It’s a good thing”. The text message,… Continue reading
- Step Number One: Internet AccessMay 24, 2012
In the spirit of posting highlights from this week’s Freedom to Connect conference, I’d like to next point to the talk given by former FCC chairman Michael Copps, entitled “Step Number One to Getting our Democracy Right”. Here’s the video: The full text is here, and it’s probably a quicker read tha...
- Solving Problems the Internet WayMar 29, 2012
The Internet works differently than most other things we’re used to. 20th century humans are accustomed to hierarchy, control and scarcity. The Internet, by contrast, is distributed open, and abundant. That difference is fundamental — it not only empowers what’s possible on the Internet (which we...
- Loud power and quiet powerMar 12, 2012
When the Internet erupted on January 18th to voice its discontent with SOPA and PIPA, it was a moment of loud power. Fight for the Future has a nice infographic describing everything that happened that day: 115,00 websites blacked out, 10mm signatures gathered, 8mm calls to congress; all in one day...
- What we mean when we talk about NetworksMar 4, 2012
I’ve been spending a lot of time recently thinking about networks. By networks, I mean groups of people, connected to one another via the Internet, who are able to do things and solve problems together by way of their direct connections to one another. As seemingly obvious as that definition may be...
- Cities that Work Like The WebJan 10, 2012
Here are slides from a talk I gave at the Living Cities Strategic Forum on Technology and Civic Change. Continue reading