[lbo-talk] James Boyle: Web’s never-to-be-repeated revolution

[Chuck0]

The web changed everything, as far as activism and dissent are 
concerned. The rise of the anti-globalization movement in the U.S. would 
have happened much slower than if the web wasn't around. The web enable 
dissenters to communicate, plan, do outreach, and many other things in a 
way that wasn't possible before the Internet. Whenever I hear some 
activist complaining about the Internet, I ask them if they'd like t go 
back to the time when outreach consisted of putting up flyers that were 
torn down right after they were put up.

It's really cute that somebody is reminiscing about Archie and Gopher. 
Thank god those things didn't last for long.

Chuck0

JC Helary wrote:


> But corporations have gone from merely vigilant to hyper vigilant  
> _because_ the web is what it is today.
> 
> The web has greatly contributed to diffusion of "knowledge" ie  
> intellectual property and chances are without 15 years of web  
> development corporations would not be what they are today concerning  
> intellectual propoerty.
> 
> Corporations are not _smart_. They can't guess which technology is  
> going to make it in the next 15 years.
> 
> Something like the web grew out of proportions because it looked  
> totally innocuous in the 90'. I am sure there are technologies todays  
> that nobody cares to look at because they look dumb but will change  the 
> way we deal with the world in 15 years from now.