Dimen Designs

The Commoditization of the Social Graph

  No Facebook - Blessington St, St Kilda 
  Originally uploaded by avlxyz.

The data portability dust up, thanks to Google's announcement of Google Connect, and covered by the Gillmor Gang and Techmeme, is continuing the conversation that Umair at BubbleGeneration started awhile ago. He deserves the credit for being one of the first to posit the notion that Facebook was evil and wrapped within that theme is the idea that their model or platform would start to crumble:

Which, in turn, begs the question: will it be plastic, or specific?

That is, will it be dependent on graph/platform/profile/etc data from a single network, or from many networks?

If you understand what network scale economies really are, it's almost inevitably the latter.

So who's in a dominant position - Google, or Facebook?

I think we, not the mainstream press but the early adopters of the web/techie world, are starting to see the same cracks in Facebook's amour that Umair has been thinking and blogging about for some time.

Fred posted on this topic today, in fact citing a lunch conversation he had with Umair a few months ago, and here's the synthesis of the future of the social graph:

What you cannot commoditize is the desire to create a social graph on a web service and the desire to maintain a social graph on a web service and the flow of data into and around that social graph.

The internet, if it has any one permanent characteristic in the way that is has evolved so far, is a fundamentally disruptive force on every product, service, business, or industry that tries to harness its power.

What does this mean for technologists and entrepreneurs?

Think hard about how to use the internet because we are in its infancy and there are millions of opportunities out there. But as well, be cognizant of how quickly your idea can be copied and cannibalized by those same internet forces that first gave you inspiration.

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Now playing: Bloc Party - Tulips 

Craig Newmark Speaking at Case Western

Craig Newmark of Craigslist fame is speaking today as the commencement speaker at Case Western University. Thanks to my friend Jeff Schuler for the Twitter heads up.

He spoke for about 20 minutes and just wrapped up. A few highlights from his speech:

• It's the common, trite things that people care about
• I'm a nerd and wore a pocket protector back when I was in school
• "I suck as a manager" and that why Jim Buckmaster runs Craiglist
• Treat others as you want to be treated
• Customer Service is my job
• It's not that we (Craigslist) don't want to sell out, but it comes down to Nerd Value: once you've become comfortable and planned out your future, why should you want to get more money?
• I know rich people in Silicon Valley and money doesn't make them more happy, it becomes a burden so instead we focus on doing, on action
• The internet is fostering new ways of social action and philantropy, like Donor's Choice
• MBAs should think about customer service as a valuable asset rather than a cost
• If you're graduating from law school, think about the U.S. political elections for president because Washington is going to need some new lawyers
• He also noted that Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert were some of America's top news reporters

And if you watch the video, try the WMV version instead of the Quicktime version, it was much better quality.

Long on Twitter: It's Their Unique Space on the Internet

  Twitter 6x6 
  Originally uploaded by Steve Woolf.

From my Exeter trip on Wed., where I found wifi at the train station that let me access a few sites for free, the BBC had a succinct article on the unique space that Twitter fills: http://tinyurl.com/58p9be

I've called it microblogging or short status messages to friends and family unfamiliar with Twitter but the weak description doesn't do it justice.

I found myself using Twitter as a starting point for my news, in addition to my iGoogle homepage. In fact, I noticed a fundamental shift in my reading habits as Twitter has increased it share in my reading and online activity use. When I have a second of free wifi on my smartphone (see my last post about how I'm using my mobile as a wifi device here in the UK) and only a site or two to scan, I'm now reading Twitter because I get a good mix of news/updates from those I follow and it's always current (as someone on Techmeme pointed out, Twitter beat the USGS in announcing the devastating China earthquake).

''But as I sit here writing this I feel connected to a community of people, feel that we share a space that none of the social network sites can conjure up, a space that is both here and not here, somewhere between offline and online.''

The following & followers feature on Twitter is easy to describe but the benefit or value of this feature is quite difficult to express to non-Twitter users. There is connection to these people in your Twitter community that I don't have from other social or communication platforms because my Twitter community isn't composed of people who are friends in the traditional sense of the word, which is how I've been using Facebook (meaning I don't accept just casual  acquaintances or one-time meets offline as a Robert Scoble or Jason Calacanis does).

So it means that Twitter, and I'm sure this was an accidental innovation-- the way that most disruptive technologies or innovations occur-- is a unique platform/service in my online presences. Fred and Brad at Union Square Ventures were smart to invest because they understood this unique space that Twitter fills, even if 'monetization' isn't yet clearly defined. Since you get addicted to Twitter for both personal and professional reasons around staying connected to your friends and community (whether social, tech, or business), I'm not worried about monetization right now and am long on Twitter.

Caribou Playing Thu. Night at Scala

  Caribou 
  Originally uploaded by Jeremy Farmer Photog.

My first concert in London, can't wait to go. I've heard of Caribou before and have been listening to them via The Hype Machine to get in the mood.

The sound reminds me a lot of The Album Leaf, who I saw play in D.C. a couple years ago. That was an amazing show so let's hope Caribou and London are of the same caliber.

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Now playing: Leo Laporte and the TWiTs - TWiT 142: I Like Big Pockets

A Smartphone Without the Phone

       My old but
  dependable XV6700

Having moved to London, I've been in the quandary of what to do for a mobile device. My old smartphone, an XV6700 from Verizon, was a birthday present from three years ago. While awkward at the beginning, I did become quite attached to it (I thought maybe I could have the phone chipped over here and keep using it).

Or I thought I was addicted to the smarthphone.

What I've realized after having been without the phone connection, however, is that I'm addicted to the web, not to the phone connection or even the device.

In fact, I could almost care less about the phone. So I did use it for voice calls-- quite often in fact and with a full QWERTY keyboard, texting was a breeze-- but I've never used my personal mobile that much during the day for phone calls because of office line.

So until I picked up a new, cheap, pay-as-you go phone via Virgin, I was really only missing the mobile after work. And I will admit, looking for a flat in London without a mobile is almost a suicide mission; even with Google Maps, you still get lost.

  My new MotoFone F3 via Virgin

What's surprised me is that the smartphone is almost as valuable as before, even without the phone service, because it has a wi-fi connection.

All of a sudden, I'm no longer dependent on Verizon for getting on the web, checking Gmail, sending Twitter posts, etc., I'm now dependent on free, open wi-fi hotspots.

But the fact that I can get by with almost 75% -85% of the my phone tasks without having the  smartphone on a phone network should tell you a lot; it's all about the web now.

Granted, I'm an early adopter so I everyone may not yet be at this stage but this case exemplifies where the world is going within the mobile market. Yes, we still want to talk and text each other, but damn it, just get me on the web somehow (and wi-fi hotspots, at least in a big city, are easy to come by) and I can get by just fine, thank you very much Mr. Dinosaur Teleco.

The telecoms aren't disappearing but their market is all about 1s and 0s now and that's a hard notion for them to grasp. And once the voice connections become better via VoIP and Skype on the smartphones, then the assumption that we still need a dedicated voice connection for our phones may start to crumble.

Could you get by with almost 75-85% of your must-have tasks without being connected to the phone network and only using the smartphone's wi-fi connection?

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Now playing: Death Cab For Cutie - I Will Possess Your Heart

New Death Cab for Cutie Album, Narrow Stairs

Been Listening to the new Death Cab for Cutie's upcoming album, "Narrow Stairs," and it's quite good. I was late to DCFC and only started listening to them after hearing Postal Service on the radio back in March 2003.

[I remember that day fondly, hearing "Recycled Air" for the first time on KRCC, because a huge snow storm pummeled the Front Range in Colorado that week and I had the week off by chance. I was still working Colorado Springs after graduation and went down to sports complex and built a little jump by the metal rail around the track to practice some boardslides.

It was an amazing session, just me out there doing my own thing and finally trying to slide a metal rail-- yes, it's hard. After the pain of not committing to the rail, I finally slide it a few times. Retreating to my car to warm up and drive back to my house, I heard "Recycled Air" and was amazed by the sound. At home, I downloaded as much postal Service as I could find.]

The new DCFC album comes out Tuesday but I've been listening to a few songs via The Hype Machine among other places. You've probably heard the first single, "I Will Possess My Heart"  but that's not my favorite.

"Your New Twin Sized Bed" is my favorite song of the album (reminds me a lot of Star's song, "My Favorite Book") and it's been on massive rotation over the last few days. If we weren't in the digital age, I would have surely burned through that section of the tape already from all of the playing.  Give it a listen and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Cold Beer on a Hot London Afternoon

MicroHoo Deal Falls Through and That's the Right Outcome

  Microsoft is taking over Yahoo! 
  Originally uploaded by Gnal.

[May 7th Update: Meant to post this late Sunday night before the amrkets clsoed but that didn't happen. SO a little dated now but I was right about the stock price hitting $24 a share.]

Read late last night that the Microsoft-Yahoo deal has collapsed, primarily due to price differences (Microsoft was willing to pay $33 a share, Yahoo wanted $37) but there are lots of reasons that this fell through. Marc Andreessen's extremely insightful pre-collapse analysis explores all of the why-not reasons, which he wrote before the collapse was announced.

I didn't want this deal to go through and I'd suggested to friends when I went to the Utah Ski Trip back in late February. that this wasn't a good acquisition.

Two dinosaur tech companies without clear internet strategies means two poor players merging to become a super poor-player.

Here are some good posts on why the deal wouldn't or shouldn't happen:

• Mike Arrington interviews Citi analyst Mike Mahaney
• Bijan- "big market share doesn't equal innovation or success"
• Gillmor Gang- emergency May 3rd addition on MicroHoo deal collapse

I'll also be interested to see if Umair weighs in on this merger-collapse discussion.

Quickly, who are the winners and losers?

• Winners- Google (in the same way that it "won" the FCC's wirless spectrum auction) and the us (e.g. internet users)
• Losers- Microsoft, and less so, Yahoo

So looking ahead, Fred Wilson and others are taking guesses on where Yahoo's stock price will go on Monday. Take the poll below to participate:

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Things I'll Miss About DC

It finally hit me last Wednesday night when I went for my usual run down at The National Mall that I'm going to really miss D.C. Beyond the obvious fact that I'll miss all the great friends and colleagues I've met over the last two years, there are the small, seemingly trite and overlooked experiences of living in a place that I’ll miss the most. This was my last run in D.C. and the realization that I’m actually moving to London for the unforeseeable future made me slightly melancholy.

  kim_Mall 
  Originally uploaded by cherbert.

I’m going to miss the view from the Capital looking West down The Mall and to the Lincoln Memorial in the distance. Sitting on the wall with that view in front of me became an important part of my running cool down ritual; it was relaxing, allowed me to clear my brain, decompress from work, and have a good think. In fact, my goal was to dream up some cool web sites or other companies that I wanted to start while sitting there with The Mall stretched out in front of me.

Still haven’t started any of those ideas, yet, but they’re on a list on my computer germinating. Maybe they’re time will never come unless I act on them but I refuse to give into that sentiment that they will never happen. Granted, there’s never a right time for anything but I haven’t given up the dream behind those ideas.

I’ll also miss the Military Band Summer Concert Series that performed on the steps of the Capital. What an amazing venue for listening to a military band play classical music during a warm summer night. And for those concerts that I stumbled onto, during a run of course, I always stopped to listen for awhile and soak in the atmosphere. The band would play close to the North steps and the audience (lots of families) would pack the steps in front of them while the rest of the audience sat or stood in the arced space behind the band.

  Memorial Bridge in Washington, DC 
  Originally uploaded by bpmccaffrey.

Just beyond the Lincoln Memorial is Arlington Memorial Bridge and a set of stairs that look across the Potomac towards Rosslyn, VA. As part of the run, I went across the bridge into Arlington National Cemetery and loop back to those stairs on the D.C. side, running a few speed intervals. The stairs were tiring because they happened after having run out and back across the bridge, which was always windy and the sun was in your face for at least half of the trip. But the view from the set of stairs was always settling and motivating, despite my sore legs and dry throat.

The Capital Hill neighborhood was quite good to me. I’m not in politics so it may seem an unnatural fit but I was talking with a fellow CC alum about the D.C. neighborhoods and she thought that a lot of us came to Capital Hill over other places because it matched the type of people we are. Take that where you want but I think her point was that it has a small town, tight-knit community feel and that’s something that I take away from my experience at CC and being in Colorado Springs. The Hill had that feel where the neighbors knew each other and said hello on the sidewalks or in the coffee shop, families with strollers could walk around during the day to the parks or come back at night without any concern, and the people themselves were outgoing, driven and also cool at the same time.

I’ll miss that vibe of Capital Hill along with my daily walk past Eastern Market on the way to metro every morning. Walking past the dog walk area, the school on 8th and Pennsylvania, and the antics of Barracks Row (there’s nothing like hitting the 7-11 on Barracks Row at night, there was always a odd mix of characters in there. And don’t forget the Sizzlin’ Express either, a chain restaurant that was actually a community hang-out for a lot of Capital Hill people. I will miss the H3 form the hot grill, what a delicious chicken sandwich.

There are more experiences and moments that I’ll miss about D.C. but it’s these kind of innocent, perhaps trite memories that I fondly cherish. It was a good two years (hardly enough time to really know a city but about average for most young people in Washington) and perhaps I’ll return but for now London is my new home. And I’m hoping to discover just as many little nooks and crannies about this city as well.

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Now playing: The Bird And The Bee - F*cking Boyfriend

Closing Week and Celebrating Gapers at Jackson Hole

It was Jackson Hole's closing week of the 2007/08 season and what better way to celebrate than with a gaper party.

Photo via Jackson Hole Resort.

What's a gaper you ask?

If you love skiing or snowboarding, you have to love gapers. And if you don’t know what a gaper is, you may just be one.

And in honor of closing week, my favorite song to listen to while driving to Jackson Hole for a ski trip.
Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash -- Jackson