Friday, September 7, 2012
how many internet users?
there are more than 2 billion internet users world wide.
internetworldstats.com
internetworldstats.com
Thursday, March 29, 2012
how many college students are there in the united states
first source listed (on lycos)
i.e. resource jackpot
http://www.quora.com/How-many-college-students-are-there-in-the-United-States
i.e. resource jackpot
http://www.quora.com/How-many-college-students-are-there-in-the-United-States
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
the answer
why? because they're so cool
all right, this could be a product
where do you find a list of blogs?
http://www.businesswritingblog.com/
see, i've looked at this, and i think it's worth noting.
http://www.businesswritingblog.com/
see, i've looked at this, and i think it's worth noting.
i might read
i might read howtoblogabook.com, though i'm not really interested in writing a book. it's a blog, for one thing ... lot of material in blogs
i have a choice at a site like that
either i spend minimum 5 minutes with something, and get some idea of what's going on, or all i get to see is the admittedly splashy graphic, and i have no idea what's going on.
i should get an incredibly good idea of what's going on with a bunch of stuff in about one second, when i visit a web site.
i should get an incredibly good idea of what's going on with a bunch of stuff in about one second, when i visit a web site.
another really bad web site
Paste Magazine.
sure there's a lot on the page, but you have to poke around in all sorts of places to actually see anything.
sure there's a lot on the page, but you have to poke around in all sorts of places to actually see anything.
gotta start somewhere
i'm curating noahbrier.com.
clicking through the "older post" links, i find the first post on page 7.
there's also a personal statement, that comes before that ... with a lot of links in it. i can't link to that, as far as i can tell. you just have go back and find it, i guess.
noah's projects (in the order listed):
percolate
brandtags
likemind
myfirsttweet (whoa, a lincoln ad!)
first post: really depressing data on gender equity in the work place
... a peek into the google algorithm
... some bs about the locavore movement
... some ideas about how to structure a business ... but who can read this garbage ... absolutely nothing you can use to GET STARTED. i want to look at the extensive comments more closely. if i'm saying it leads to nothing practical, i have to do the research, and show it's true.
... a cute bit of fluff from the onion
... i don't care about your stupid data, i shop as green as i can ... which is pretty green ... and i'm just as smug as you are. references The Economist Free Exchange. god i hate The Economist. and refs. something they ref.
... "is indie dead?" does being cute and clever make a post consequential? do a hundred inconsequential posts add up to anything? yeah, you're a big success, but is that because you're cute and clever ... or because you're part of a club? by the way, you mention paste magazine. that might be fun.
... ah, the famous doer-thinker debate. you get something done, because you're a thinker, and part of a club, and suddenly all the other thinkers - outside of the members - are a lower order of existence ... quoting thomas friedman, no less.
... yeah, i think about this stuff. i'm sure my thoughts are vastly inferior, but here they are. there is no difference between experience and memory. the whole purpose of experiencing something is to remember it. wanna enhance the internet? enhance its memory. you actually reference this two years later. (this post is dated march 22, 2010. the later one is dated march 5, 2012.) (the later post references News.me)
... fluff ... pretty cute
... so, you don't like bureaucracy ... the noble art ... let's see what your guy has to say about complexity ... let's peek into your club ... here (gaming the system is something i want to do), and here. listen, i don't hate you guys, i just think you're not being helpful ... you're the powers that be, you should be helpful. by the way, the second law is complete crap, and you're just talking about it to sound erudite.
... all about noah ... expounding on "innovation" for fellow club members ... i mean, the slides are really cool ... i don't mind studying your methods ... but the idea is about 1 inch deep ... are you some kind of right winger? yeah, stuff that isn't commercially successful has relevance, including economic relevance ... stupid ... just because professor shumpeter sais otherwise doesn't make it so. what you're advocating, now in several posts, is ANARCHY. you wouldn't allow it in your club, where everybody must behave, but outside, it's everyone for themselves. about the iPhone, and technology that doesn't break, you are onto something. but now who's dreaming? the only way to make stuff that won't break is to give people the knowlege they need to maintain it. how do we get from your blog to information about how to actually do this stuff? by getting into harvard? colbert. doctorow. will apple be able to get away with having a closed system? notes on serendipity. whoo hoo. you take something sublime, and color it grey.
clicking through the "older post" links, i find the first post on page 7.
there's also a personal statement, that comes before that ... with a lot of links in it. i can't link to that, as far as i can tell. you just have go back and find it, i guess.
noah's projects (in the order listed):
percolate
brandtags
likemind
myfirsttweet (whoa, a lincoln ad!)
first post: really depressing data on gender equity in the work place
... a peek into the google algorithm
... some bs about the locavore movement
... some ideas about how to structure a business ... but who can read this garbage ... absolutely nothing you can use to GET STARTED. i want to look at the extensive comments more closely. if i'm saying it leads to nothing practical, i have to do the research, and show it's true.
... a cute bit of fluff from the onion
... i don't care about your stupid data, i shop as green as i can ... which is pretty green ... and i'm just as smug as you are. references The Economist Free Exchange. god i hate The Economist. and refs. something they ref.
... "is indie dead?" does being cute and clever make a post consequential? do a hundred inconsequential posts add up to anything? yeah, you're a big success, but is that because you're cute and clever ... or because you're part of a club? by the way, you mention paste magazine. that might be fun.
... ah, the famous doer-thinker debate. you get something done, because you're a thinker, and part of a club, and suddenly all the other thinkers - outside of the members - are a lower order of existence ... quoting thomas friedman, no less.
... yeah, i think about this stuff. i'm sure my thoughts are vastly inferior, but here they are. there is no difference between experience and memory. the whole purpose of experiencing something is to remember it. wanna enhance the internet? enhance its memory. you actually reference this two years later. (this post is dated march 22, 2010. the later one is dated march 5, 2012.) (the later post references News.me)
... fluff ... pretty cute
... so, you don't like bureaucracy ... the noble art ... let's see what your guy has to say about complexity ... let's peek into your club ... here (gaming the system is something i want to do), and here. listen, i don't hate you guys, i just think you're not being helpful ... you're the powers that be, you should be helpful. by the way, the second law is complete crap, and you're just talking about it to sound erudite.
... all about noah ... expounding on "innovation" for fellow club members ... i mean, the slides are really cool ... i don't mind studying your methods ... but the idea is about 1 inch deep ... are you some kind of right winger? yeah, stuff that isn't commercially successful has relevance, including economic relevance ... stupid ... just because professor shumpeter sais otherwise doesn't make it so. what you're advocating, now in several posts, is ANARCHY. you wouldn't allow it in your club, where everybody must behave, but outside, it's everyone for themselves. about the iPhone, and technology that doesn't break, you are onto something. but now who's dreaming? the only way to make stuff that won't break is to give people the knowlege they need to maintain it. how do we get from your blog to information about how to actually do this stuff? by getting into harvard? colbert. doctorow. will apple be able to get away with having a closed system? notes on serendipity. whoo hoo. you take something sublime, and color it grey.
oh, yeah, that's going to happen
i just want to do something really cool. a really cool post.
on today's web, in order to get results, you have to post a really cute picture of a baby, or a cat. in other words, you have to do something totally stupid. i mean, i love pictures of babies and kittens, but is that all the web is about?
and, noah, all your posts are about babies and kittens. they're all USELESS ... unless you're part of the professional baby and kitten poster's club.
on today's web, in order to get results, you have to post a really cute picture of a baby, or a cat. in other words, you have to do something totally stupid. i mean, i love pictures of babies and kittens, but is that all the web is about?
and, noah, all your posts are about babies and kittens. they're all USELESS ... unless you're part of the professional baby and kitten poster's club.
it's not cool if
it's not cool if it's just a tilted map
it has to zoom, and spin
and be modeled in three dimensions.
it has to zoom, and spin
and be modeled in three dimensions.
i don't know
i don't know if hating noah brier and scott belsky and ALL the pretentious academics is actually going to get me somewhere. what can i post - that's almost the one thing i can do - that will actually get some results?
this is clearly going nowhere
there was a picture on the front page today, of a tea party protester in front of the supreme court. she wore a scolding expression. i got so mad, i started hitting her, and ripped the whole paper in half.
obamacare is support by people who actually care ... for everyone. that strikes some people as outrageous.
obamacare is support by people who actually care ... for everyone. that strikes some people as outrageous.
why the heck ...
does it need to be so complicated?
if i rephrase my earlier statements about what i want, it might help. can anyone recommend really good web hosting, with really good support?
if i rephrase my earlier statements about what i want, it might help. can anyone recommend really good web hosting, with really good support?
what you get
you get either a fee or a portion of the revenues, that is, equity. these strategies for attaching value to your work need to be programmed. i'm trying to find two kinds of programming: computer programming, and business programming.
no one
NO ONE will take on the project as described.
i'm saying "build me a complete web tool - account funding and tools - and you get ... what?
don't know.
i'm saying "build me a complete web tool - account funding and tools - and you get ... what?
don't know.
how do web tools get built?
the guy and his friends build it together.
i don't have any friends.
the guy goes to school, where he gets lots of advice.
i'm not in school. don't expect to be in school. haven't been in school in the past.
so, what am i supposed to do?
i don't have any friends.
the guy goes to school, where he gets lots of advice.
i'm not in school. don't expect to be in school. haven't been in school in the past.
so, what am i supposed to do?
the preceding ...
the preceding is not a full feature set
but it might serve to describe the problem
but it might serve to describe the problem
super simple variant
once someone has an account, they can post to the stream.
when someone comes to the page - as a reader - they see the last posted post.
a post is a whole page. if someone is looking at your post, your post is all they see. it fills the whole page.
when you arrive at the page, you are looking at the last thing posted. now you can click the previous button, and see the last thing posted before that. keep clicking, and you see a lot of posts.
when someone comes to the page - as a reader - they see the last posted post.
a post is a whole page. if someone is looking at your post, your post is all they see. it fills the whole page.
when you arrive at the page, you are looking at the last thing posted. now you can click the previous button, and see the last thing posted before that. keep clicking, and you see a lot of posts.
i want
what i want from the internet today is a page with a button on it, that displays a form, that people can use to buy a subscription.
once someone buys a subscription, they get to use certain tools.
they get their own pages. they can create as many as they want, within reason.
no, wait, i need a super simple variant.
once someone buys a subscription, they get to use certain tools.
they get their own pages. they can create as many as they want, within reason.
no, wait, i need a super simple variant.
things you can't break
Brier on things you can't break. This is what i'm talking about! Javascript you can't break. Please see earlier (30) posts. Sorry, i just can't index this stuff. That's why i want javascript.
what i am and am not willing to do to get the internet to send me money
i am not willing to convince people to buy a slightly useful product at a very high price.
i am not willing to encourage people to buy things on line that they should be getting at a nearby store.
i am willing to encourage people to buy a great product at a very low price.
i am willing to encourage people to buy access to the internet ... on the internet ... at reasonable prices.
i am willing to encourage people to buy great things that can properly be bought on the internet.
i am not willing to encourage people to buy things on line that they should be getting at a nearby store.
i am willing to encourage people to buy a great product at a very low price.
i am willing to encourage people to buy access to the internet ... on the internet ... at reasonable prices.
i am willing to encourage people to buy great things that can properly be bought on the internet.
reporting
from Noah Brier (i'm kissing his butt, you see), a good comment on distribution of value. i'm a male, so the problems i'm having getting access may not have to do with gender. as a rule, you have to be in some sort of club to get access.
you could interpret some of what i'm reading about how to get access as how to form clubs.
you could interpret some of what i'm reading about how to get access as how to form clubs.
ok, ok, be honest
skipping over all the permutations of wanting the internet to send me money
i want someone to like my posts today
whew, that's tough
i want someone to like my posts today
whew, that's tough
what i want from the internet today
i want the internet to send me money today.
i doubt it will, though, which is all the more reason to think it won't.
(the internet will send money today to people who are sure it will send money to them today
because they know exactly what to do to get it to send them money today
and they are prepared to do it.)
since i'm not prepared to do what i know will get the internet to send me money today
since the internet is therefore unlikely to send me money today
there must be another reason for me to be on line, which i am, and plan to be all day
other reasons
i doubt it will, though, which is all the more reason to think it won't.
(the internet will send money today to people who are sure it will send money to them today
because they know exactly what to do to get it to send them money today
and they are prepared to do it.)
since i'm not prepared to do what i know will get the internet to send me money today
since the internet is therefore unlikely to send me money today
there must be another reason for me to be on line, which i am, and plan to be all day
other reasons
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
and yet, i am
the actual truth is ... everything is free.
payments are just for distributing all the free stuff the world provides us with, and the small or large amount of work that's required to maintain the flow of free stuff into people's lives.
if payments are properly and proportionally attached to the flow of stuff that's generated by people's labors, then they become as nothing. they simply harmonize. but properly and proportionally attaching payments to the goods in the flow is difficult. that's why we get discrepancies between price and value. at the same time, it's true that people are always working to properly and proportionately attach prices to value, with greater and lesser success. sometimes there is more general success, and sometimes there is less general success, thus, the ebbings and flowings of economies.
this is not, as it might be thought, just a question of things going up and down. it's much more substantially a question of things going out of existence and things coming into existence. a person who is aware of this can nimbly skip from one thing to another, and sustain prosperity regardless of the shifting sands of time ... and an economy that is aware of this can do the same. and they do.
a new good comes into existence, and distributing the cost of it through the economy is a challenge. its newness, in fact, makes doing so temporarily unnecessary. now where is this headed? the work of distributing cost across the nodes of the new reality is ongoing. it will progress. what is this predicting? MORE FREE WEB HOSTING. freeer web hosting. NOT FREE WEB HOSTING ... FREEER WEB HOSTING.
payments are just for distributing all the free stuff the world provides us with, and the small or large amount of work that's required to maintain the flow of free stuff into people's lives.
if payments are properly and proportionally attached to the flow of stuff that's generated by people's labors, then they become as nothing. they simply harmonize. but properly and proportionally attaching payments to the goods in the flow is difficult. that's why we get discrepancies between price and value. at the same time, it's true that people are always working to properly and proportionately attach prices to value, with greater and lesser success. sometimes there is more general success, and sometimes there is less general success, thus, the ebbings and flowings of economies.
this is not, as it might be thought, just a question of things going up and down. it's much more substantially a question of things going out of existence and things coming into existence. a person who is aware of this can nimbly skip from one thing to another, and sustain prosperity regardless of the shifting sands of time ... and an economy that is aware of this can do the same. and they do.
a new good comes into existence, and distributing the cost of it through the economy is a challenge. its newness, in fact, makes doing so temporarily unnecessary. now where is this headed? the work of distributing cost across the nodes of the new reality is ongoing. it will progress. what is this predicting? MORE FREE WEB HOSTING. freeer web hosting. NOT FREE WEB HOSTING ... FREEER WEB HOSTING.
i can't be claiming ...
surely i can't be claiming that web hosting should be completely free for everyone? of course not. the thing is, the cost of web hosting is not being evenly distributed, among the users.
people should pay for what they get, and get what they pay for. that's not the case today. today, people don't pay for what they get, and don't get what they pay for, on the web. people is the people, the 99%.
people should pay for what they get, and get what they pay for. that's not the case today. today, people don't pay for what they get, and don't get what they pay for, on the web. people is the people, the 99%.
how on earth can i claim that web hosting should be free?
it's a function of the actual value of web hosting, measured on a per capita basis, and including everyone. you cannot even approximate that by measuring the value of the internet to successful internet entrepreneurs ... the target market for web hosting ... the constituency that is being served.
you cannot approximate it by measuring for only people with web hosting accounts, that they pay for. you're pretty serious about programming the web, if you have a web hosting account.
and, because this is true, there is free web hosting - all over the place. this is web hosting that serves the masses. how are the masses measured? they're the 99%.
but this web hosting for the masses is extremely limited. it's like a beautiful narcotic, leading us to ruin.
if real web hosting were food, the price of bread would be astronomical. in its current state of evolution, web hosting is treating web hosting as if it were not food.
is web hosting food? yes, it is.
it's as if society decided that most people only need to eat, say, crackers, to survive.
society does make those kinds of decisions, at times, when things are changing. but those kinds of decisions eventually correct. they get corrected.
you cannot approximate it by measuring for only people with web hosting accounts, that they pay for. you're pretty serious about programming the web, if you have a web hosting account.
and, because this is true, there is free web hosting - all over the place. this is web hosting that serves the masses. how are the masses measured? they're the 99%.
but this web hosting for the masses is extremely limited. it's like a beautiful narcotic, leading us to ruin.
if real web hosting were food, the price of bread would be astronomical. in its current state of evolution, web hosting is treating web hosting as if it were not food.
is web hosting food? yes, it is.
it's as if society decided that most people only need to eat, say, crackers, to survive.
society does make those kinds of decisions, at times, when things are changing. but those kinds of decisions eventually correct. they get corrected.
how is the question answered?
answering this question requires that valid javascript be defined. it also requires an answer to the question "how" do i run javascript on this server?
can i run valid javascript on this server?
ok. i feel good that's progress on the question of what to type in. but i still don't know where to type it. in a recent experiment, my web hosting didn't like this kind of code. it wouldn't run the javascript, and neither it nor its operators would tell me why. i could try again, but that perhaps should be against my principles. a place where people could freely type in javascript should drop everything when a user has a problem, and focus on solving that user's problem.
basically, i think i'm done with paying for web hosting. it doesn't make sense. period. i'm a dupe, a rube, paying for web hosting. i'm pretty sure that's true.
basically, the most accessible option for people seeking to employ a server is on the cloud. the cloud is universal, already, and i believe there's free access to the cloud for people who know how to get it. i think it's a present reality. i'm not sure what all the right questions to ask are, for someone seeking free access to the cloud, but i'm pretty sure this is one of them: can i run valid javascript on this server?
that's either true, on my web hosting, or it's not, but they aren't telling me. in fact, they seem confused by the question, which suggests maybe i can't run javascript.
i mean, i need to know for sure.
basically, i think i'm done with paying for web hosting. it doesn't make sense. period. i'm a dupe, a rube, paying for web hosting. i'm pretty sure that's true.
basically, the most accessible option for people seeking to employ a server is on the cloud. the cloud is universal, already, and i believe there's free access to the cloud for people who know how to get it. i think it's a present reality. i'm not sure what all the right questions to ask are, for someone seeking free access to the cloud, but i'm pretty sure this is one of them: can i run valid javascript on this server?
that's either true, on my web hosting, or it's not, but they aren't telling me. in fact, they seem confused by the question, which suggests maybe i can't run javascript.
i mean, i need to know for sure.
hmmm
i'm not sure if the preceding will work. i'm not sure about the div inside the anchor tag. oh, wait, it should be ok. the a tag is styled position:relative by default, and a positioned:absolute tag, the div, gets sized and positioned relative to the first parent positioned absolute. it's dicey, but should work.
blob e 2
<html><body>
<div id="ttd" style="position:absolute;left:20%;top:80%;height:100px;width:100px;background-color:lightpink"><a href="javascript:dtte()"><div id="ttdenlarge" style="position:absolute;bottom:1%;right;1%;width:5%;height:5%;background-color:greenyellow"></div></a></div>
<script type="text/javascript">
function dtte() {
var originalttdwidthandheight = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width
var ttdwidthandheight = originalttdwidthandheight*1.25
var shiftamount = (ttdwidthandheight-originalttdwidthandheight)/2
var ttdleft = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.left
var ttdbottom = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.bottom
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width = ttdwidthandheight + "px"
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.left = ttdleft+shiftamount
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.height = ttdwidthandheight + "px"
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.left = ttdbottom+shiftamount
}</script>
</body></html>
with some modifications, the code should now display a button inside the soft pink blob, and clicking that button should enlarge the blob (and the button) ... around the lower left corner of the blob.
<div id="ttd" style="position:absolute;left:20%;top:80%;height:100px;width:100px;background-color:lightpink"><a href="javascript:dtte()"><div id="ttdenlarge" style="position:absolute;bottom:1%;right;1%;width:5%;height:5%;background-color:greenyellow"></div></a></div>
<script type="text/javascript">
function dtte() {
var originalttdwidthandheight = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width
var ttdwidthandheight = originalttdwidthandheight*1.25
var shiftamount = (ttdwidthandheight-originalttdwidthandheight)/2
var ttdleft = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.left
var ttdbottom = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.bottom
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width = ttdwidthandheight + "px"
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.left = ttdleft+shiftamount
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.height = ttdwidthandheight + "px"
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.left = ttdbottom+shiftamount
}</script>
</body></html>
with some modifications, the code should now display a button inside the soft pink blob, and clicking that button should enlarge the blob (and the button) ... around the lower left corner of the blob.
how would a box for communicating with javascript get into the window
there's a default place for typing in javascript, which is a file that's placed on a server.
limited success with this. my server is now returning something other than what i asked for - which basically amounts to exactly nothing - and won't tell me why.
<html><body>
<a href="javascript:dtt()"><div id="ttd" style="position:fixed;left:20%;top:80%;height:100px;width:100px;background-color:lightpink"></div></a>
<script type="text/javascript">
function dtt() {
var ttdwidthandheight = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width = ttdwidthandheight*1.25 + "px"
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.height = ttdwidthandheight*1.25 + "px"
}</script>
</body></html>
if this is correct, and this is all that's in a file on the server, when someone asks the server for that file, with a browser, their browser should display a soft pink blob in the lower left of the window, and that blob should get bigger when it's clicked.
limited success with this. my server is now returning something other than what i asked for - which basically amounts to exactly nothing - and won't tell me why.
<html><body>
<a href="javascript:dtt()"><div id="ttd" style="position:fixed;left:20%;top:80%;height:100px;width:100px;background-color:lightpink"></div></a>
<script type="text/javascript">
function dtt() {
var ttdwidthandheight = document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.width = ttdwidthandheight*1.25 + "px"
document.getElementByID("ttd").style.height = ttdwidthandheight*1.25 + "px"
}</script>
</body></html>
if this is correct, and this is all that's in a file on the server, when someone asks the server for that file, with a browser, their browser should display a soft pink blob in the lower left of the window, and that blob should get bigger when it's clicked.
like, what would you type?
javascript, please place a soft pink blob on in the window, sort of in the lower left. let's call this "first blob."
tom, i don't have much of an idea what a pink blob is, much less a soft pink blob. also, would you care to define "sort of in the lower left" more closely. i get that you want it in the window.
where would you type this? where would you read javascript's answer? somewhere in the window. there would be a box you would type in for communicating with javascript.
tom, i don't have much of an idea what a pink blob is, much less a soft pink blob. also, would you care to define "sort of in the lower left" more closely. i get that you want it in the window.
where would you type this? where would you read javascript's answer? somewhere in the window. there would be a box you would type in for communicating with javascript.
javascript = freedom
javascript is the freedom to build tools.
in order to build tools, you type in javascript. but where? where do you type in javascript?
is there a place on the web where you can freely type in javascript and build tools? if there is, i haven't found it yet. it might be right under my nose. i suspect it is. but i haven't found it.
how do i go about finding it, or maybe creating it?
in order to build tools, you type in javascript. but where? where do you type in javascript?
is there a place on the web where you can freely type in javascript and build tools? if there is, i haven't found it yet. it might be right under my nose. i suspect it is. but i haven't found it.
how do i go about finding it, or maybe creating it?
the tools for implementing complexity-miniaturization on the web
the tool for implementing complexity on the web is html.
the tool for implementing miniaturization on the web is css.
the tool for implementing css for implementing miniaturization on the web is javascript.
there then emerges another layer, in which javascript becomes the tool for implementing complexity in the product of miniaturization. a host of complexity-miniaturization acts creates a host of complex, miniature things, and a host of complex miniature things is a thing, which can be complexified, and miniaturized.
the tool for implementing miniaturization on the web is css.
the tool for implementing css for implementing miniaturization on the web is javascript.
there then emerges another layer, in which javascript becomes the tool for implementing complexity in the product of miniaturization. a host of complexity-miniaturization acts creates a host of complex, miniature things, and a host of complex miniature things is a thing, which can be complexified, and miniaturized.
complexity-miniaturization vector
in order to implement complexity-miniaturization, first, you implement complexity, and then you miniaturize. i'm pretty sure that's the way it works. you simply don't first miniaturize and then implement complexity.
it's such a fundamental question. it really changes the context.
it explains certain things. it confirms certain things.
it's such a fundamental question. it really changes the context.
it explains certain things. it confirms certain things.
the most basic tool for programming the internet
strings are the most basic tool for programming the internet.
text strings.
you type them. "type them in."
text strings.
you type them. "type them in."
ah, the old secrecy principle!
i am therefore not going to say what the interface should look like.
it is not for me to say. the reason for that emerged a long time ago. it, too, is part of the secret.
instead, i am going to write about how i think the interface can be programmed.
what i think the tools are, for that purpose ...
it is not for me to say. the reason for that emerged a long time ago. it, too, is part of the secret.
instead, i am going to write about how i think the interface can be programmed.
what i think the tools are, for that purpose ...
what
shaping content ... ... ...
on any typical content generation platform, how many different kinds of shapes can i generate, using the provided tools ... and i mean, the ones i can understand? 2? 4? 8? 10?
this is extremely important. it's important to the future of the internet.
my old nemesis, Paolo Soleri, identified this all powerful paradigm, defining it thus: complexity-miniaturization.
on any typical content generation platform, how many different kinds of shapes can i generate, using the provided tools ... and i mean, the ones i can understand? 2? 4? 8? 10?
this is extremely important. it's important to the future of the internet.
my old nemesis, Paolo Soleri, identified this all powerful paradigm, defining it thus: complexity-miniaturization.
the universe within a technical question
and this doesn't limit me to technical writing. at the heart of any technical construct is a philosophical idea. the question of purpose is in the technical purpose. i have an idea how this may work.
the answer!
i need to write about specific technical issues
not the purpose of anything (the internet's purpose, my purpose, anyone's purpose) ... that emerges out of technical capability
not the purpose of anything (the internet's purpose, my purpose, anyone's purpose) ... that emerges out of technical capability
my arcane purpose
here's my arcane proposition: i'm trying to learn programming by writing on a blog.
i could try to explain how that's supposed to work
but it would put people off ... wow! the power of secrecy
and again it's pushing me towards the same answer
the one i've been seeking all along.
i could try to explain how that's supposed to work
but it would put people off ... wow! the power of secrecy
and again it's pushing me towards the same answer
the one i've been seeking all along.
above all, i'm here, now, to ...
learn programming.
it's a meta purpose.
shape the web.
that's a meta purpose too.
it's a meta purpose.
shape the web.
that's a meta purpose too.
should i write about my own purpose?
is that how i want to define my own purpose, harmonizing, creating abundance? it's a little treacle, to put it mildly. how do i muddle through this?
maybe i should keep my purpose secret. hmmmmmmmmmm.
hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
once it's revealed, that can't be undone. it needs to reveal itself! this is an absolute truth! it's what i identified earlier as the heart of art!
and this pushes me, it pushes me, towards where i wanted to go: towards implementations. i feel like that is what i'm really interested in.
that and my purpose.
maybe i should keep my purpose secret. hmmmmmmmmmm.
hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
once it's revealed, that can't be undone. it needs to reveal itself! this is an absolute truth! it's what i identified earlier as the heart of art!
and this pushes me, it pushes me, towards where i wanted to go: towards implementations. i feel like that is what i'm really interested in.
that and my purpose.
what is the purpose of the internet?
is it for creating a harmonious world with real abundance for all sentient beings?
or is it helping people muddle through, which we're all doing, and must do, to live, and prosper, as individuals and as a sentient being collective?
is there some choice to be made here? are the two things really different?
Noah Brier on the question of accepting things. the inharmonious world of muddling through is clearly reality. it's the context within which we can harmonize and create abundance.
or is it helping people muddle through, which we're all doing, and must do, to live, and prosper, as individuals and as a sentient being collective?
is there some choice to be made here? are the two things really different?
Noah Brier on the question of accepting things. the inharmonious world of muddling through is clearly reality. it's the context within which we can harmonize and create abundance.
second level of purpose
over a period of time spent on line, the user's purpose is likely to be, in the most general sense, to both send and receive data. this forces us to look more broadly at an internet user's purpose, their reasons, for going on line. what do they hope to accomplish?
the two purposes
so, what will we generally find, when we look at the purpose for which someone has gone on line, at a particular moment? it neatly bifurcates. at a given moment, a given internet user's purpose is either sending or recieving ... data.
is there such a thing as a purpose?
can a person arrive somewhere with a purpose? yes and no. it's probably a very useful thing to do, to arrive somewhere with one purpose. at the same time, isn't one purpose always part of a larger purpose? or, if not that, isn't a purpose always related to an array of other purposes? isn't this true at least in a practical sense? isn't the idea of a purpose isolated from any other purpose just an abstraction? such an abstraction may have its purpose. we again must make a choice, to investigate the idea of an absolute purpose, or to investigate the cloud of purposes which seems more likely to describe our lives
... which seems more practical. (or ... which seems more practical?)
... which seems more practical. (or ... which seems more practical?)
making a decision
i think the broad question is interesting, and i want to explore it over time, and see what i find.
the narrow perspective seems to promise immediate utility, and so, i am choosing it, to be my focus, right now. this seems to begin to define my purpose. (i am a part of that cloud of users, each arriving at the internet, at some moment, with some purpose to pursue.
the narrow perspective seems to promise immediate utility, and so, i am choosing it, to be my focus, right now. this seems to begin to define my purpose. (i am a part of that cloud of users, each arriving at the internet, at some moment, with some purpose to pursue.
what is the internet for?
this formulation is a little more ambiguous, and poetic, and thus maybe more conducive to real insight.
does the internet serve some one purpose? would it be useful to answer that question? from a narrow perspective, it serves (we can probably say) a purpose to someone using it, and what that purpose is depends on what they're doing with (on it) it at a particular moment. from the opposite, most broad perspective, does it serve a purpose for, um, the universe ... or, zooming in somewhat, the world, and then society?
the narrower question produces a cloud of new questions. we could look at each user and ask, what purpose is the internet serving for this person. from this perspective, the answer looks like a cloud of undifferentiated answers. we have to look at the individual answers to extract meaning from the answer.
the broader question produces something more like a tree, with the question being "the root." does the universe have a purpose? do the world and society have a purpose? what do the words "a purpose" mean?
does the internet serve some one purpose? would it be useful to answer that question? from a narrow perspective, it serves (we can probably say) a purpose to someone using it, and what that purpose is depends on what they're doing with (on it) it at a particular moment. from the opposite, most broad perspective, does it serve a purpose for, um, the universe ... or, zooming in somewhat, the world, and then society?
the narrower question produces a cloud of new questions. we could look at each user and ask, what purpose is the internet serving for this person. from this perspective, the answer looks like a cloud of undifferentiated answers. we have to look at the individual answers to extract meaning from the answer.
the broader question produces something more like a tree, with the question being "the root." does the universe have a purpose? do the world and society have a purpose? what do the words "a purpose" mean?
is the internet useful?
maybe a better question would be what's the internet for? and a still better one is what can the internet do?
is this a nonsense question? change it around a little and see if it makes more sense: what can i get the internet to do?
is this a nonsense question? change it around a little and see if it makes more sense: what can i get the internet to do?
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