The Eclectic

So, being on tour, I have been almost completely disconnected from the computer realm. However, of the tools that I do use to stay in touch during my life as a nomad, Facebook has been the latest to evolve for the better.

When my friends started raving about Facebook last year, like with blogging, I was resistant at first. Once I found out how fun Facebook can be (and how unquestionably superior it is to Myspace), I began to use it more and more. So, when Facebook began to release new applications, and then an open API for community developers, instead of doddling with skepticism, this time I jumped in with both feet. I’m sure my support for FOSS and community-driven initiatives had an influence on this too. While the Facebook apps I use allow the tool to outgrow its name–the apps have little to do with networking through photos–I love the new abilities I have to publish information about myself, my tastes, and my activities in a uniform layout that doesn’t suffer from any of the obvious flaws of Myspace’s equivalent services.

Then, Facebook wowed me again. I noticed a while ago that Mark Zuckerberg’s name had disappeared from the bottom of Facebook pages. The moment I saw this, I smelled a buyout. Thus, I was overjoyed to find that, not only was Facebook still in the hands of its founders, but it has turned down huge sums of money from major corporations, and has received funding from at least one VC organization that knows a good thing when it sees it.

Some people may find new applications “annoying” while developers learn to fine-tune users ability to ignore certain Facebook “requests”, and others may feel that new Facebook apps don’t fit within the vision of “a facebook”, but personally, I think its makers have seen the potential of an already well-connected community infrastructure to become even more useful.

Many kudos to Zuckerberg and his team.

Technorati Tags: Facebook, Myspace, applications, API, community-driven, Mark Zuckerberg, buyout

Reading this article got me thinking about an ongoing debate in ethical decision making. This debate is more common applies to the decision making process, as well as evaluating a decision in hindsight.

The dilemma is this: when making a decision, which is more important, the reasons for choosing what a given alternative, or the results yielded by choosing a given alternative? (more…)

Technorati Tags: ethical decision making, reasons, results

While sipping my Firefox morning coffee, I came across quite a few articles discussing the future of digital markets. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of capitalism, though I accept it for what it is and what it does. Meanwhile, the issues of net neutrality and free markets are a giant capitalist mess, but I think these topics are both interesting and important. My quarrels with capitalist philosophy lie, for the most part, in the harm to individuals that stems from facilitating greed and corporations. While the issues of net neutrality and VRM are problems that need to be attacked from a capitalist perspective, both ideas strive to better serve the needs of people as individuals. That’s what makes these ideas so exciting. (more…)

Technorati Tags: free markets, net neutrality, VRM

TheHodge Podge Radio Podcast got a facelift tonight. I just modified an existing style set, but I like the randomized header image. For those who are new to HoPo Radio, be sure to tune in to find, your first ever, and your next to be, favourite song.

Might write more on how the update went tomorrow—-might not. For now, must sleep.

Technorati Tags: Hodge Podge Radio Podcast, HoPo Radio