Social Software + Web 2.0 + Social Graphing
January 31, 2008
TIM O’REILLY
Founder and CEO of O’Reilly Media, Inc.
In November 2002, Clay Shirky organized a “social software summit,” based on the premise that we were entering a “golden age of social software… greatly extending the ability of groups to self-organize.”
I was skeptical of the term “social software” at the time. The explicit social software of the day, applications like friendster and meetup, were interesting, but didn’t seem likely to be the seed of the next big Silicon Valley revolution.
I preferred to focus instead on the related ideas that I eventually formulated as “Web 2.0,” namely that the internet is displacing Microsoft Windows as the dominant software development platform, and that the competitive edge on that platform comes from aggregating the collective intelligence of everyone who uses the platform. The common thread that linked Google’s PageRank, ebay’s marketplace, Amazon’s user reviews, Wikipedia’s user-generated encyclopedia, and CraigsList’s self-service classified advertising seemed too broad a phenomenon to be successfully captured by the term “social software.” (This is also my complaint about the term “user generated content.”) By framing the phenomenon too narrowly, you can exclude the exemplars that help to understand its true nature (((Does the term Digital Storytelling suffer from too narrow a framing and fixing of termonology?))) . I was looking for a bigger metaphor, one that would tie together everything from open source software to the rise of web applications…
…Now, five years after Clay’s social software summit, Facebook, an application that explicitly explores the notion of the social network, has captured the imagination of those looking for the next internet frontier. I find myself ruefully remembering my skeptical comments to Clay after the summit, and wondering if he’s saying “I told you so.”
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s young founder and CEO, woke up the industry when he began speaking of “the social graph” — that’s computer-science-speak for the mathematical structure that maps the relationships between people participating in Facebook — as the core of his platform. There is real power in thinking of today’s leading internet applications explicitly as social software.
Mark’s insight that the opportunity is not just about building a “social networking site” but rather building a platform based on the social graph itself provides a lens through which to re-think countless other applications. Products like xobni (inbox spelled backwards) and MarkLogic’s MarkMail explore the social graph hidden in our email communications; Google and Yahoo! have both announced projects around this same idea. Google also acquired Jaiku, a pioneer in building a social-graph enabled address book for the phone…
…* As these various data graphs become the indispensable foundation of the next generation “internet operating system,” we face one of two outcomes: either the data will be shared by interoperable applications, or the company that first gets to a critical mass of useful data will become the supplier to other applications, and ultimately the master of that domain…
…Ideas themselves are perhaps the ultimate social software, evolving via the conversations we have with each other, the artifacts we create, and the stories we tell to explain them.
Yes, if facts change our mind, that’s science. But when ideas change our minds, we see those facts afresh, and that’s history, culture, science, and philosophy all in one.
How would digital storytelling feature the social aspect as the explicit ‘act’ (= families?)? How do you incorporate social graphing (= family tree? …bloodties translated as social (most communicated with) ties)?
How do you socially graph artefacts (e.g. photos) when they become mixed into other peoples stories?
traffic data = social links – location links – event links
Net promotes centralization
January 31, 2008
The Radiant and Infectious Web via WolrdChanging.com
NICHOLAS CARR
Author, The Big SwitchIn January of 2007, China’s president, Hu Jintao, gave a speech before a group of Communist Party officials. His subject was the Internet. “Strengthening network culture construction and management,” he assured the assembled bureaucrats, “will help extend the battlefront of propaganda and ideological work. It is good for increasing the radiant power and infectiousness of socialist spiritual growth.”
I now see that I was naive. Like many others, I mistakenly interpreted a technical structure as a metaphor for human liberty. In recent years, we have seen clear signs that while the Net may be a decentralized communications system, its technical and commercial workings actually promote the centralization of power and control. Look, for instance, at the growing concentration of web traffic. During the five years from 2002 through 2006, the number of Internet sites nearly doubled, yet the concentration of traffic at the ten most popular sites nonetheless grew substantially, from 31% to 40% of all page views, according to the research firm Compete.
…..It’s not hard to understand how the Net promotes centralization. For one thing, its prevailing navigational aids, such as search engine algorithms, form feedback loops. By directing people to the most popular sites, they make those sites even more popular. On the web as elsewhere, people stream down the paths of least resistance.
Data is the Intel Inside
January 31, 2008
data is the intel inside via O’Reilly Radar:
That least-understood principle from my original Web 2.0 manifesto, “Data is the Intel Inside,” is finally coming out of the closet. A post on the Google Operating System Blog entitled Google is Really About Large Amounts of Data notes that in an interview at the Web 2.0 Summit in October, Marissa Mayer, Google’s VP of Search Products and User Experience, “confessed that having access to large amounts of data is in many instances more important than creating great algorithms.”
In particular, Marissa admitted that the reason for offering free 411 service was to get phoneme data for speech recognition algorithms. You heard it first on Radar. What’s also interesting, though, was her note on why they want better speech recognition algorithms right now: to improve video search. There’s an interesting principle here, namely that the obvious applications for a technology (e.g. transcription or speech recognition interfaces) aren’t necessarily the ones that will have the biggest impact. This is a great reason why companies like Google are increasing their data collection of all kinds (and their basic research into algorithms for using that data). As the applications become apparent, the data will be valuable in new ways, and the company with the most data wins.
More thoughts on opening up systems/networks to amass users and hence data by O’Reilly Radar:
…open systems don’t mean the end of competitive advantage, but instead simply move the competition to new ground.
For the current generation of Internet applications, sometimes referred to as “Web 2.0,” the data collected from users is the true source of competitive advantage. And the first movers, the companies that understand and apply this insight, have services that get better fast enough that their competition never catches up.
The power of a social network like MySpace or Facebook isn’t in its software or its control over which applications get on its platform. It is in the critical mass of participating users. Ditto for eBay, Skype or YouTube. Even less obvious cases like Amazon, where user annotation makes for the best product catalog in the world, and Google, whose search index and ad auction are both driven by user participation, show the power that comes from harnessing the collective activity of everyone who uses the service.
Cellular carriers need to embrace this insight. Winner-take-all profits can be achieved by opening up their networks and then harnessing community contributions (including the contributions of software developers) to improve — or invent — new services.
DataPortability
January 31, 2008
connect, control, share, remix
Existing Technologies (invent nothing) + Turnkey Reference Bluprints (Keep it simple and open – put it all in context) + Simple User Story (Create the ‘Intel Inside’ brand)
Philosophy: As users, our identity, photos, videos and other forms of personal data should be discoverable by, and shared between our chosen (and trusted) tools or vendors. We need a DHCP for Identity. A distributed File System for data. The technologies already exist, we simply need a complete reference design to put the pieces together.
Mission: To put all existing technologies and initiatives in context to create a reference design for end-to-end Data Portability. To promote that design to the developer, vendor and end-user community.
More Online Remixing Tools
January 31, 2008
A web based tool for remixing, sharing and publishing video and audio
Make it Personal. Mix, Discover, Interact, Publish, MobileCast, Personalize your media like never before.
Eyespot is working to create a mutually beneficial ecosystem of website publishers, content providers, and advertisers. In the increasingly competitive online world, these stakeholders face real problems: website publishers need differentiators to drive signups and retention, content providers need engaging interactive campaigns to drive discovery and sales, and advertisers need immersive online experiences to drive brand awareness.
By putting creative tools and rights-cleared media into the hands of influencers and connectors, Eyespot enables social media and participation culture like no other company. Enabling influencers and connectors in turn leads to the creation of content that attracts legions of viewers, thereby completing the ecosystem that benefits all parties.
Eyespot provides video editing and sharing software that can be easily embedded in any website. Unlike other video editing solutions, Eyespot technology is easy-to-use, intuitive, and accessible for all end-users. Our solution includes next generation video sharing technology, enabling users to share not only via email and embed codes but also to mobile phones, portable players, and other connected devices.
Eyespot content screening technology employs audio, video, and text filtering techniques to protect website publishers against copyright infrle content. As part of our turn-key solution, our filtering technology protects brands while maximizing monetization opportunities.
Eyespot’s ad insertion and product placement technologies complete our turn-key solution. By providing contextual advertisements as an information service rather than as intrusive annoyances, the Eyespot platform brings audiences together with advertisers and content owners in unprecedented ways.
Photobucket + Online Adobe Video Editing Tool
January 31, 2008
The sharing is in the mixing
In the past YouTube has been accused of being a “fake sharing” site as it doesn’t provide the tools to remix video.
A “true sharing” site doesn’t try to exercise ultimate control over the content it serves. It permits, in other words, content to move as users choose. - Lawrence Lessig
In February 2007 Adobe launched online editing tools with Photobucket - Tim O’Reilly blogss about it:
I love that in addition to “slide shows,” “order prints”, and “share album,” photobucket now will add “Remix video.” Remixability is a huge part of Web 2.0, and the ability to modify video as well as just to consume it is a huge part of bringing video into the mainstream of Web 2.0.
The functionality is pretty basic. Both Photobucket and Adobe are reaching out to the millions of users for whom even Premiere Elements or iMovie are too much. And they may well be right (though I hope to see more of the amazing features of Flash video, like layers and more complex soundtracks, added in future.) In our conversation, Alex Welch, the CEO of Photobucket, talked about the hunger that their users have for online editing tools.
…There will be no advertising introduced into the created video stream. He pointed out that users are far more engaged when creating and managing content than when just viewing it (as anyone who reads Kathy Sierra knows!) “Advertisers are looking for more than just standard IAB units,” he says. Here there will obviously be a huge opportunity for advertisers to offer branded video libraries as components for remixing. The host site sets the policies about how the video is branded and monetized.
Hats off to Geoff Baum and Lalit Balchandani, the creators of the product.
This is a huge step forward in the democratization of media on the web.
What Photobucket has to say about the Adobe mashup:
Once editing is complete, the resulting video mashup can be embedded into any web page, blog, or social network profile by copying and pasting a snippet of HTML code. The mashup can also be shared with family and friends using Photobucket’s built-in sharing tools. Photobucket recently launched features to enable quick and easy posting to blog services and social networks such as Blogger, Xanga, LiveJournal, MySpace, Bebo, and Facebook directly from within a Photobucket album.
About Photobucket
Photobucket is the easiest and most reliable way for people to create, manage and share their personal media online. Photobucket is the web’s most popular creative hub, linking billions of personal photos, graphics, slideshows, and videos daily to hundreds of thousands of web sites, including: MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, Friendster, eBay, Craigslist, Blogger, Xanga and others. Photobucket’s more than 35 million users upload more than 7 million personal photos, graphics and videos to Photobucket every day, and the site is growing at a rate of 85,000 new users a day. Photobucket currently serves over 70% of all content links to social networking web sites and serves over 3 billion images and video requests every day. The company actively moderates content to create a safe environment for its users, partners and advertisers. Photobucket has offices in Palo Alto, California and Denver, Colorado and is located online at www.photobucket.com
MySpace launches Photobucket integration into the MySpace Comments Editor – December 20, 2007
MySpace today launched a really useful Photobucket integration into their ever-popular Comments Editor on MySpace.com.
Here’s how it works:
* Login to your MySpace profile and go post a comment on a friends profile.
* In the comments editor, click on “Add Image from Photobucket”, and you can log directly into your Photobucket album — all without leaving MySpace.
* Browse your Photobucket album to find the image you want to post; click on the one you like and click the “Add image to comment” button.
* All without leaving MySpace!
Facebook® Enables Users to Share Video, Photos, News, Blogs and More From Anywhere on the Web – October 31, 2006
Photobucket is an online personal media hub for photos, videos and graphics. Photobucket’s 27 million users can now share their Photobucket images and videos on Facebook with just one click of the link to share on Facebook.
YouTube &…
January 19, 2008
What other platforms are there for showing digital stories on the web?
The beginnings of a list – descriptions taken from the websites “about” section.
blip.tv: The world is changing as it becomes easier for people to produce great content. We focus on shows — the kind of stuff you might find on television but don’t.
“The CEO of Blip.TV said that she thought it was important to preserve independence for producers of content because that was a characteristic that attracted people to the content in the first place.” – Rader O’Reilly
vimeo: Use Vimeo to exchange videos with only the people you want to. We have a bunch of different privacy options so you can choose exactly who can see your videos, and others can do the same. When you join Vimeo, this page becomes your homepage and will fill up with your videos (and the videos you love). Vimeo has been around since the last days of 2004.We currently have over 7 billion users who have uploaded over 950 trillion videos.
Break.com: Break is the premier online entertainment destination for guys with over 18,000,000 unique viewers and 500,000,000 page impressions per month (Nielsen Site Audit). Men 15-35 come to Break to enjoy the best content online, helping show over 12,000,000 videos and 5,000,000 pictures daily. Break is more than a website – we are a cutting edge community for guys and the content they like, content made by our viewers for our viewers. We know what guys want to see because we want to see it, too.
Jumpcut: The easiest way to upload, edit, and share your video and photos. Free.
If creating a video and publishing it to the web seems like a challenge, we think you’ll find that Jumpcut makes it easy and fun. If you’ve been wondering what to do with the video you shoot with your snazzy new camera (or your phone), Jumpcut is the perfect place for you to be creative. If video isn’t your thing just yet and you just want to make cool slideshows with your pictures, Jumpcut is still the best place.
Finally, a free online location where you can use all your media, create great looking movies and publish to anyone you choose. There’s nothing else like it.
Remixing is another feature unique to Jumpcut. Basically, Remixing is creating your own version of someone else’s movie, usually incorporating elements from the original, and adding more content or maybe just some of your own style and spicy goodness.
Whether you’re familiar with other video editing tools or not, you’ll find Jumpcut’s online editor very easy to use and full of all the features you need.
Viddyou: is simultaneously private diary and public confessional. Snapshots of life captured in streaming, digital frames of video that tell the stories of who we are, how we think, and how we live while tickling the voyeurs inside all of us. Share the silly moments, the proud moments, and the heartfelt stories by capturing them in your own free video blog.
Viddyou is the best way to share your personal videos with friends on Facebook. We make it really easy to add video from your webcam, digital camera, computer hard drive or you can even send it directly from your phone and the video will automatically be added to your Facebook.
Metacafe
Revver
iFilm
Heavy: Heavy.com is one of the web’s leading consumer video companies and the leader for 18-34 year old males, which is a key demographic for marketers and advertisers. Heavy combines its own unique original programming with those of its users to create an environment where you can control and even participate in your own personal video experience.
Machinima
January 19, 2008
“Alex Chan simply wanted to make a political statement, countering what he deemed inaccurate coverage of the riots in French suburbs. Instead, the industrial designer created an emblem for a hot new form of entertainment. Working on his laptop with software from a $70 video game — a technique called machinima — Chan made a rudimentary but powerful 12-minute animated film about racism, The French Democracy, that is winning applause worldwide. “What I love is how neatly it blends the culture of games with the aesthetics of film,” says Clive Thompson, a journalist in New York who has written about machinima and runs a well-known blog on technology and culture.”
Data Visualisation
January 19, 2008
How can relationship data be mapped: what is the best method for describing the “family tree” of Digital Storytelling in Wales?
1. Prefuse is a set of software tools for creating rich interactive data visualizations. The original prefuse toolkit provides a visualization framework for the Java programming language. The prefuse flare toolkit provides visualization and animation tools for ActionScript and the Adobe Flash Player.
Reconstructing Artifacts
January 19, 2008
“The invisible enemy should not exist by Michael Rakowitz unfolds as an intricate narrative about artifacts stolen from the National Museum of Iraq, Baghdad, in the aftermath of the US invasion of April 2003; the current status of their whereabouts; and the series of events surrounding the invasion, the plundering and related protagonists. The centerpiece of the project is an ongoing series of sculptures that represent an attempt to reconstruct the looted archeological artifacts.
Reconstructions of the artifacts are made from the packaging of Middle Eastern foodstuffs and local Arabic newspapers, moments of cultural visibility found in cities across the US. This exhibition extends a commitment to recuperate the 7,000+ objects whose whereabouts remain unknown.”
