How to build the Open Mesh
My entire life I’ve been driven not by making money with software, but by it’s world changing ability. I’ve witnessed a world waking up to the possibilities of computer based multimedia, of pervasive content and information, of on-line community interaction and what happens when Moore’s Law, Metcalfe’s Law and the ever expanding greed of capitalism collide in the valley of consumer electronics, entertainment, science and commerce.
So I’ve written a treatise that lays out a game plan as to how small to medium sized entities can play along with the BigCos moving forward. I call this treatise “How to build the Open Mesh” and it’s available as:
- a book
- a video
- a wiki
- and will be a series of live events, put on around the world
This treatise will morph and evolve over time, representing the latest developments, standards and ideas at that moment. In fact since starting this treatise, many new developments have already forced me to add entirely new sections and pages.
Many now refer to what we’re building as ‘the Open Stack’. Advocates, leaders and evangelists have emerged. All the major platforms have swallowed the “open is the new black” red pill and those who don’t - will die.
I use the public stage as an arena and sounding board on which to launch tirades and ask hard questions of the CEOs and execs of these BigCo platforms. I put conference vendors on the spot and force them to facilitate and moderate the kinds of conversations we need to happen to enable this open mesh. I grandstand on my blog, on ‘radio shows’ and podcasts. I wave my arms and use body language at live speeches and on video.
I do whatever it takes to make this all happen.
I am a trained opera singer and to me - this is the theater of life. Watching Babylon burn has been one amusing recent Act in this opera. Watching each bubble inflate and get popped - is another.
The main sections of the treatise are:
- Open is the New Black: the principles of the Open Mesh
- 10 Chapters of the Treatise
- The Outline format, distributed dashboards and a distributed friending mechanism
- Followup items: Open standards, Live Events and the Bill of Rights for users of the Social Web
- Appendices: what are Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Facebook and MySpace doing?
I’ve been working on this treatise since spring ‘08 and it originally appeared as a series of blog posts, which helped me formulate the basic chapter structure. Then I added a story in front of the chapters, which sets up the ideas and lays the groundwork for a comprehensive treatise. I then conclude the current version of the book with followup items and Appendices.
Right now I’m working on a new section, which is what I think of as me putting ’skin into the game’. I want to make some serious contributions to the DiSO project and have an idea for an outline format which I think is needed for our distributed world.
Dashboards will play an important part to these contributions, as will a ‘distributed friending’ mechanism.
The wiki that we set up will be the place where I can receive feedback, contributions and keep the treatise up to date and relevant.
And I’ll be hitting the road, bringing the message to software developers and marketeers, around the world. Those are the constituents of this treatise. This is not meant for the shelves of Barnes & Noble or Amazon.
This is sort of like a Computer Lib of today. That prescient book (by Ted Nelson) may not have gotten everything right, but it was written in 1974 for Christ sakes~!#!
At all times I try and keep it short and relevant, while also staying personable and provocative.
It should be obvious that this is a kind of hybrid coffee table book designed for the ADD generation, who obviously can’t pay attention long enough to read too many words.
Friday Dec. 26th, 2008
