Re: "destabilizing core technologies: was Re: An RDF wishlist

Ian,

On 7/2/2010 5:25 AM, Ian Davis wrote:
> Patrick,
>
> Without disputing your wider point that HTML hit the sweet point of
> usability and utility I will dispute the following:
>
>    
>> HTML 3.2 did have:
>>
>> 1) *A need perceived by users as needing to be met*
>>
>>      
> Did users really know they wanted to link documents together to form a
> world wide web? I spent much of the late nineties persuading companies
> and individuals of the merits of being part of this new web thing and
> then gritting my teeth when it came to actually showing them how to
> get a page online - it was a painful confusion of text editors ( no
> you can't use wordperfect ), fumbling in the dark ( no wysiwyg ),
> dialup ( you mean I have to pay?)  and ftp! When MS frontpage came
> along the users loved it because all that pain went away but they
> could not understand why so many people laughed at the results.
>
>    

Well, possibly. I am not sure that is how users saw the need.

That's the rub, I think it is hit or miss.

In the publishing area where I worked when the web came along, it was a 
question of being able to make low return material available to a wider 
audience for less distribution cost.

Not so much being part of a linked web as making material accessible.

How many users saw it that way I cannot say.

> I think we all have short memories.
>
> The advantage that HTML had was that people were able to use it before
> creating their own, i.e. they were aleady reading websites so could at
> some point say "I want to make one of those". The problem RDF is
> gradually overcoming is this bootstrapping stage. It has a harder time
> because, to be frank, data is dull. But now people are seeing some of
> the data being made available in browseable form e.g. at data.gov.uk
> or dbpedia and saying, "I want to make one of those".
>
>    

Good point. But the basic tools to handle data have been around for a 
long time.

Why so long to get to the place where users can say: "I want to make one 
of those." ?

Which I agree is a very good strategy.

Hope you are having a great day!

Patrick

> Ian
>
>    

-- 
Patrick Durusau
patrick@durusau.net
Chair, V1 - US TAG to JTC 1/SC 34
Convener, JTC 1/SC 34/WG 3 (Topic Maps)
Editor, OpenDocument Format TC (OASIS), Project Editor ISO/IEC 26300
Co-Editor, ISO/IEC 13250-1, 13250-5 (Topic Maps)

Another Word For It (blog): http://tm.durusau.net
Homepage: http://www.durusau.net
Twitter: patrickDurusau

Received on Friday, 2 July 2010 09:40:30 UTC