So there is a big to-do going on at Digg.

The editors were afraid of being sued over the HD-DVD key being the top story. And they might.

BUT now their loyal user base is up in arms and finding ways to game the system to put it at the top anyway.

I really think this is a lesson on Social Networks. If you rely on user generated content it can be VERY fickle and tricky to juggle. Editorialize and you could get in trouble. Don’t editorialize and you will end up in court.

So you have to be small and go under the radar or be big enough to fight back in court (read Google and YouTube).

In between may just be un-tenable. In the long run these social network/user generated content sites might all need to be open source so there is nothing to sue. It may just not be viable for a big company to “own” them… since they don’t really…

I seem to collect more questions than answer here but that is just the way my mind works. If I get it, no big deal, not need to comment. If it doesn’t make sense or is very unclear, then its intriguing.

Anyway, WHY does it matter who’s imbedded player is used on the web. Does Adobe really make alot of hay with flash? I know they sell tools but the fact that it is simply in use. Does that get them value?

http://gigaom.com/2007/04/15/another-fight-microsoft-vs-adobe/
They fight, but does it matter? What is really at stake? Mindshare? Just the tools? Simply seems unimportant but I get the feeling I am missing something.

The economics of wi-fi especially citizen wi-fi still intrigue me. People leverage lots of cheap pipes, optionally add some mesh technology and open it up with local wi-fi access.

Can you get “good enough” web access for free?
Will consumers pay the additional extra to get WiMax or Cellular data options?

As better applications for mobile data come out I think this will be significant. Just not sure if any particular model for mobile data access will win out.

Sadly it seems to me that the free wireless networks are all going to end up in the wrong places. Like meraki’s in San Franscisco. http://sf.meraki.net/
If you can afford to live in SF the cost of mobile internet is actually negligible. Go into poorer areas here or overseas and maybe the difference of a monthly payment has a bigger impact.

“AT&T will be bringing a mobile replacement for credit cards, checks and cash soon to that AT&T-branded phone, as the carrier is partnering with some big-name banks for what could be the largest mobile banking push in the US so far. AT&T customers will be able to manage bank accounts and pay bills through Wachovia, BancorpSouth, Regions Financial and SunTrust banks using an application on their handset (we’re thinking a J2ME app). The good news: AT&T’s partnering with three of the top U.S. banks combined with free usage of this new mobile banking app will most likely draw more customers to its wireless Internet services — and we’re sure AT&T had that in mind here.”

About time. The Japanese have been doing this for ages.

So how long until its possible to go around with just your phone and no wallet?

Five years?

RSS is a topic/technology I am really excited by.  The idea of customers pulling and assembling their own “web stuff” is very powerful (and to this point underutilized).

Anyway there is a neat little online TV show with a really basic explanation of RSS.
http://www.thedigitaledgeblog.com/digitaledgetv/

If find this interesting from two standpoints.

First, its nice to see a really simple RSS explanation.  I bookemarked it to give to friends before I start blathering passioately about RSS feeds and all the stuff missing from them and why I really need to fix that somehow.  The explanation is clear and its simple (even if it undersells the power).  Check it out if you dont know what the heck I am talking about.

More importantly this is a TV show, that can be fed through RSS that covers a topic for free, ~done by one guy~.  No fancy studio, no expensive equipment.  That is powerful.  Really powerful.

Okay, so my foray into joining with a Sports Simulation game company ran into some snags.  Communications snags most of all, which really makes me sad as I believe that is a true strong point of mine.  ~But~ it takes two to communicate… or maybe even more than two.

After taking a few weeks to recover my equalibrium after taking a “big leap” and landing on my face, its time to get started thinking again.  Remove Sports Center from the RePlay.  Uninstall those games.  Get back out there and -refigure out what you want to do. 

I have had similar thoughts to the artcile below but it is well summarized and provides a good launching point:
http://www.micropersuasion.com/2007/02/the_future_of_c.html

The funny thing is Telephone companies are trying to turn themselves into cable companies.
If you look at the three directions cable companies can go, which scenario do Telco’s wearing cablecos clothing end up. 
Yup.  I don’t think its too pretty either.

There is not much to say here but the US is really falling behind broadband wise.  And to me its clear that the big telecom players have effectively re-consolidated all their power so its unlikely to change dramatically.  The last thing I want is Verizon WiMax or 802.  They already own many of the pipes and much of my wireless access.
The only opponent is the excessively leveraged cable companies. 

Some competition is better than nothing but they are still dragging the US further and further behind other parts of the world

From www.FreePress.net we get the following facts:

  – The US is 16th overall in broadband penetration

  -  U.S. consumers pay nearly twice as much as the Japanese for connections that are 20 times as slow

Think about that again, 20 times as slow.  That actually the speed bothers me way more than the fact that it is so darn expensive. 
That is lost competitive edge. 
That is a signficant leap in what can be done in terms of applications and services.
That is the lost opportunity to be on the cutting edge  innovation that could come out of fast, cheap pipes.

Good use of new technology in the media:

Battlestar Galactica will be releasing mini-webisodes (over the web
obviously) that support and provide explanation for the upcoming
season. It adds that deeper experience for the fans that are really
into it.  Congvergence of media to tell a better story.
http://www.convergenceculture.org/weblog/2006/09/battlestar_galactica_launching.html

Then there is bad usage:
Movies being sold by Sprint to watch only on cell phones.  What the
heck?  What sort of experience is this?  Its just desperation to drive
revenue and provide a reason for their network. And don’t get me wrong I like
Sprint.  Their dataplan is 100 times better than VZs or Cingulars.
But this is a simple cas of doing something because it can be done, not because it should. 

http://www.convergenceculture.org/weblog/2006/09/sprint_begins_ppv_vod_service.html

Its definitely a new media world, for better AND for worse.

I have generally been pretty high on RSS (Really Simple Syndication) for some time.  Amazing generic technology that will slowly pervade alot of what happens on the web.  It puts the power into the listeners hands which to me makes it inheritly superior to other forms of publication.

Although RSS is not as widely understood as I would have thought it would be by now, it is getting more and more pervasive.  RSS today is sitting in the backseat while blogging drives (and hogs the spotlight).

As the tools to manipulate RSS feeds offer greater and greater flexibility perhaps RSS will come out of the backseat and do some driving.  Perhaps not though, RSS is a name only a mother could love.

For an example of a cool new tool that manipulates RSS look no further than xFruits at www.xfruits.com.  Cool stuff.  Actually they stole several elements of a service I wanted to create as a startup but there is still plenty of room for innovation in this space so I won’t let that get me down.

Check it out and let me know if it makes sense.  I think they need a little more intro on their front page to describe what they are up to, but all the early adopters probably will get it right away.  That will give them time to perpare for a bigger onslaught if they can manage to catch on.