I recommend the same essays about the web over and over again. Essays like 1000 True Fans or The Next Economy of Ideas are both informative and inspiring, and convey fundamental ideas about how the web works.
When I say “how the web works”, I’m not talking about DNS or HTTP. I’m referring to the profound impact that the web is having on community, commerce, communications and so many other parts of our lives. It’s these big ideas that are difficult to absorb, and I find the essays help.
James does the same thing, and he came up with the idea of curating a book (maybe it’s electronic, maybe hard copy, maybe both) that showcases a bunch of the best essays. In short, a toolkit for getting the web.
We were at a business retreat up in Tofino this weekend, and we hashed out the idea a little. Following the best advice of Ze Frank (rude words ahead), we started implementing the idea on the spot. Hence, GettheWeb.org. For now it’s just a Google Sites page with a Google Docs form and a YouTube video (owned by Google) explaining the project.
At this stage, we’re just looking for recommendations for “great essays about how the web works–socially, behaviorally, philosophically”. Plus we made a 78-second video discussing the project (thanks to Jay from Giant Ant for being our two-elbow duopod):
Have you got an essay about the web that you love? Submit it.
For the past decade or so, I’ve made a habit of watching hockey highlights on television. I began with the sadly-defunct SportsPage (a triple-A show for much of the Canadian broadcast talent you see on the CBC, SportsNet and TSN), and subsequently watched TSN or SportsNet.
During the winter, these shows almost always open with hockey highlights, so I’d sit down at 23:00 and be done by 23:15 at the latest.
Living in Malta, there’s obviously no Canadian highlights shows on TV. Plus, we don’t have a TV. So, as I mentioned a few weeks back, I’ve been watching highlights on the web (the CBC, mostly).
This has resulted in one subtle shift in my viewing. Instead of sitting back and watching the highlights from all the games played, I must now pick which clips I want to view. What’s the result?
Surprisingly, I watch far fewer highlights. I always check out the Canucks, obviously, but after that I’m kind of left staring at the other results and wondering which I should choose. I lean toward the Canucks’ divisional rivals and Canadian teams, I guess. Plus I’ve been watching a lot of Penguins and Blackhawks highlights, because they have the most exciting young players in the league.
Part of my problem, I suppose, is that I don’t know which highlights are worth watching–besides the score, there’s no metadata. I can’t tell which games went to overtime, or to a shootout, or which featured a fantastic goal or save.
Here’s a feature request for CBC Sports: add rating functionality to each video clip, enabling viewers to judge each clip. That would help me assess which highlights I ought to watch, and which I can give a miss.
What’s the big lesson? Well, there’s isn’t one. What’s the small lesson? A reminder about mediums and messages, and how moving video from the TV to the web inevitably changes our relationship to it.