From Bubblegeneration we get what I am calling the Media 2.0 maxims.
1) Network economies dominate search.
2) Viral economies dominate microcontent/communities.
3) Distributed economies dominate personalization/microchunking.
The point is that if you can put all three together, you realize a *huge* scale advantage, because you’re realizing nonlinear returns to scale along all three dimensions.
O’Reilly talks about What Is Web 2.0, including these Web 2.0 Design Patterns
1 The Long Tail
Small sites make up the bulk of the internet’s content; narrow niches make up the bulk of internet’s the possible applications. Therefore: Leverage customer-self service and algorithmic data management to reach out to the entire web, to the edges and not just the center, to the long tail and not just the head.2 Data is the Next Intel Inside
Applications are increasingly data-driven. Therefore: For competitive advantage, seek to own a unique, hard-to-recreate source of data.3 Users Add Value
The key to competitive advantage in internet applications is the extent to which users add their own data to that which you provide. Therefore: Don’t restrict your “architecture of participation” to software development. Involve your users both implicitly and explicitly in adding value to your application.4) Network Effects by Default
Only a small percentage of users will go to the trouble of adding value to your application. Therefore: Set inclusive defaults for aggregating user data as a side-effect of their use of the application.5 Some Rights Reserved.
Intellectual property protection limits re-use and prevents experimentation. Therefore: When benefits come from collective adoption, not private restriction, make sure that barriers to adoption are low. Follow existing standards, and use licenses with as few restrictions as possible. Design for “hackability” and “remixability.”6 The Perpetual Beta
When devices and programs are connected to the internet, applications are no longer software artifacts, they are ongoing services. Therefore: Don’t package up new features into monolithic releases, but instead add them on a regular basis as part of the normal user experience. Engage your users as real-time testers, and instrument the service so that you know how people use the new features.7 Cooperate, Don’t Control
Web 2.0 applications are built of a network of cooperating data services. Therefore: Offer web services interfaces and content syndication, and re-use the data services of others. Support lightweight programming models that allow for loosely-coupled systems.8 Software Above the Level of a Single Device
The PC is no longer the only access device for internet applications, and applications that are limited to a single device are less valuable than those that are connected. Therefore: Design your application from the get-go to integrate services across handheld devices, PCs, and internet servers.
At first glance the GPX2 seemed it could be the “open platform” handset or handheld that has been missing.
When I read about a Linux-based handheld that’s open, powerful and cheap – visions of ad-hoc networking applications seamlessly switching between wifi/wimax, mobile and physical connections danced in my head.
Linux-based handheld that’s open, powerful and cheap
Cory Doctorow: Simon writes in with news of a remarkable-sounding new Linux-based handheld computer/PDA called the GP2X:It can play games. It can play your Movies. It can play your music. It can view photos. It can read Ebooks. It runs on just 2 AA batteries – And it can do all this in the palm of your hand or on your TV screen.
It runs the free Linux operating system. This means a whole world of Games, Utilities and Emulators are at your disposal. Quake, Doom, SNES, Megadrive, MAME, Media players and Applications to name just a few.
It’s powerful – Two 200mhz CPU’s with 64meg of RAM, custom graphics hardware and decoding chips. Takes SD cards and has 64M of NAND memory. Plenty to play with. One of the most powerful and advanced handhelds today.
It’s cheap. Just £124.99.
It’s open. You want to develop your own games for the GP2X? Go right ahead. The SDK is included with the system free. Not since the days of the Amiga has a system been so easy to develop for, commercially and for fun.
It sounded great, like they really understood the potential and power of opening up your platform for innovation.
Then it came out that the GPX2 has “copyright protection by certified DRM”.
Close, but no cigar.