The race to preserve the third space

**Maggy J** · 30-03-2007, 21:07

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6496351.stm

Quote:

There are few public spaces on the net, says Bill Thompson, and we need lots more of them.

I thought this was an interesting idea..Do you think the internet is becoming too commercialised and more about profit than community?

Gareth · 30-03-2007, 21:30

Quite possibly - at least the world wide web side of the internet seems to have been dominated by commercial websites for years now.

I remember when I first went online in '95 it was completely different - Yahoo was nothing like it is today and Google didn't even exist back then!

Other areas, though, like irc for example, have remained PLC-free and will hopefully remain so.

**Chris** · 30-03-2007, 21:50

Yes and no .... proportionally, there are a lot more big-business web pages out there than there used to be, but the internet is the same as it ever was and you can set up your own non-commercial activities if you want to. Nobody is charging for the use of HTML yet, so far as I know.

Anyone who objects to the practices of the likes of Yahoo and MySpace doesn't have to use them. I don't, and I don't find my online experience any less enjoyable for it.

Damien · 30-03-2007, 22:34

I agree with Chris T. The internet is gettting bigger but small sites still can exist. In fact I quality of sites in the last 4 years has risen dramatically in inderpendent sites.

Bill Thompson is getting more and more odd in his articles I think. Maybe hes running out of things to say. I think he ignores what people actually want and comments on what they should want as well as looking too much into minor issues to draw some sort of conclusion which doesnt fit.

danielf · 30-03-2007, 23:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by Damien

I agree with Chris T. The internet is gettting bigger but small sites still can exist. In fact I quality of sites in the last 4 years has risen dramatically in inderpendent sites.

Bill Thompson is getting more and more odd in his articles I think. Maybe hes running out of things to say. I think he ignores what people actually want and comments on what they should want as well as looking too much into minor issues to draw some sort of conclusion which doesnt fit.

Exactly, I really don't know what he is on about. Ok, small independent sites may be harder to find, but that doesn't mean they aren't there. The web is the same as it was. It's just not populated by anoraks as much as it used to be. He complains of a lack of 'public service ethos'. The web is awash with forums where people help each other out on topics I've never even heard of. He conveniently forgets to mention Wikipedia. Usually (not always) a surprisingly accurate encyclopedia that is largely generated by its users. If that is not a public service ethos, I don't know what is.

Mr_love_monkey · 30-03-2007, 23:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris T

Anyone who objects to the practices of the likes of Yahoo and MySpace doesn't have to use them. I don't, and I don't find my online experience any less enjoyable for it.

Exactly, this woman wants the publicity/avaliability that myspace provides, but doesn't want the other bits that go hand in hand with it - if it bothers her that much, she should set up her own site

Gareth · 30-03-2007, 23:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by danielf

He conveniently forgets to mention Wikipedia.

Good point.

Damien · 01-04-2007, 20:14

Come to think of it. The Wikipedia/new media/youTube and so on hhas transformed the web into something which is a lot more public, allows debate, allows help, takes power away from big business and big website

**Maggy J** · 02-04-2007, 15:16

So how many 'public' spaces are there?

Just what is the definition of a public space?

Are there any examples of public spaces that have become less than public because of special financial deals with other sites? and vice versa.

**Chris** · 03-04-2007, 10:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Damien

Bill Thompson is getting more and more odd in his articles I think. Maybe hes running out of things to say. I think he ignores what people actually want and comments on what they should want as well as looking too much into minor issues to draw some sort of conclusion which doesnt fit.

Mr Thompson has egg all over his face as a result of the Apple/EMI announcement. Earlier this year he poured scorn on Steve Jobs for saying Apple would like to ditch DRM. Still, at least he's big enough to admit it!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6520801.stm

**Stuart C** · 03-04-2007, 10:51

Is the web any less of a meeting place than it used to be?

No.

I've been using the web since 1994, and while I am concerned at increasing commercialisation of the web (e.g. Google), and don't particularly like MySpace, the fact remains that in '94, the only platforms available for the public to talk (openly, not like email) were IRC, the newsgroups or various buliten boards (similar to forums). If you wanted a page or site on the web, you built it, but that didn't allow two-way communication.

Now, we have multiple instant messenger networks (some of which can talk to each other), VOIP, Myspace (and clones), Blog sites, Wikipedia (and clones), video download sites (youtube and clones), not to mention thousands of privately owned forum sites (such as this one) and email, IRC and the ability to design your own website.

Even if you do design your own site, you can (if you should want) download software that would enable your site readers to communicate back.

The only problem I can see with commercial sites (such as MySpace) is that they often do require you to use other services they have links to (as the lady singer found), or they will retain copyright ownership of anything uploaded (as Billy Bragg found).