Wiki wiki wow wiki wow wow

Check this out Wikicrimes was started by Professor Vasco Furtado from the University of Fortaleza in northern Brazil...great example of how our collective knowledge is becoming so much more explicit, referenced and thus more real...

Thanks to wikis we can re-clame knowledge from records in institutions and access it at will

Although my search for a wiki directory yielded poor results wiki directory...

I did find a relatively new wiki platform, released earlier this year...Wetpaint. The interesting thing about this wiki format is that is comprises a collection of individual wiki portals

The sites as yet pretty undeveloped and populated by a lot of commercial crap. Also I must admit not as easy to navigate as the ubiquitous Wikipedia but I'm interested to see how it develops...

Google do it again...

I've just come accross a new form of Rich Media advertising by Google - GadgetAds.

Basically they are a website within a web page but what's even better is you can add them to you iGoogle page along with your other gadgets enabling live rich media streams directly to your iGoogle mashup

So much more of a sustained communication than an "ad" and consequentially has the scope to become a brand/interest specific news real or forum reel or entertainment show...

However...you've gotta be good, you've gotta provide enough value to forgo the delete "x" and even if you manage to remain on the page - you've gotta be at the top...those gadgets athe bottom don't really get to see the light of the scroll bar...

But as chance is a chance...and what an opportunity...

Wondering about web 3.0?....AI

Just came across a great working example of how web 3.0 will work. It certainly beats the academic meanderings of wikipedia's treatment of the subject!

But when you've read that clip...it's really worth taking a peak at this blog
& excuse me while I NERD off a bit here... but the idea of a semantic internet - essentially internet as information agent and search as it's is known now a think of the past, since we're talking about an internet that understands the information it carries...i.e artificial intelligence. And we think that the social web has changed things...

And if that's getting you interested...check out Richard Dawson's Future Files book
. It's fascinating stuff, things really are about change.

The muliplier effect

Dove's onslaught did a decent job in starting conversation...





But Greenpeace's response...did an even better job...because it enabled a sort of buzz piggy backing, or multiplier effect...

The brave signoff at the end is a nice touch in our era of up-front communications

Style over substance

Just read an interesting article about how ad agency websites are all "sizzle" rather than "steak"

http://www.webinknow.com/2007/09/advertising-age.html

Now there's a point...David Meerman Scott goes on to explain how the old ad model of attention grabbing headlines or impacting creatives is irrelevant in the world of websites...where - you've gotten people's attention.

The point is HOLDING attention...of course that's content...and not design overkill at the sacrifice of interest.

Truth is i've seen it many times, I've landed on a site...and have given up wading through the mire of flash to try to find the info i'm looking for...and this extends to some of the best advertising websites...not mentioning any names!

The origins of design have been about functionality but in recent times deisgn has moved more towards aestictics...and I suppose it's time to hold onto the reigns of designers and turn them in the direction of usabilility - of displaying succint content...

Perhaps a good example of digital space design - is the design that you hardly notice..

Just had a quick look on google to test my theory...I though...how about searching for an industrial design website...after all those guys know a thing or two about design for function...

What do ya know, the boys do a fab job of simplicity and functionality

http://www.theplaycoalition.net/

Within a couple of seconds I'd gotten a good impression of what they do

Whereas with this top ad agency site...

http://www.leoburnett.com/

I'm just not engaged...I'm frustrated by the flash.

So I agree with David Meerman Scott, don't get an ad agency to design your website...especially with so many smart digital shops around who grew up in new media

Case in point - http://www.daredigital.com/ where design and functionality are seemless.