Well...but isn’t he a founder of MeWe?
This is still far in the future but the basic concept does not seem that different from diaspora* or any of the pod implementations in the Federation or the Fediverse.
But if you are a programmer this might be the opportunity to get the right set of features in.
Originally shared by Greg Batmarx
Creator of the world wide web, Tim Berners-Lee has unveiled his plans to create a new decentralized web where the data will be controlled by the users.
Tim Berners-Lee is known for creating the world wide web, i.e., the internet you know today. More than two decades later, Tim is working to free the internet from the clutches of corporate giants and give the power back to the people via a decentralized web.
Berners-Lee was unhappy with the way ‘powerful forces’ of the internet handle data of the users for their own agenda. So he started working on his own open source project Solid “to restore the power and agency of individuals on the web.”
Solid changes the current model where users have to hand over personal data to digital giants in exchange for perceived value. As we’ve all discovered, this hasn’t been in our best interests.
Solid is how we evolve the web in order to restore balance , by giving every one of us complete control over data, personal or not, in a revolutionary way.
Basically, Solid is a platform built using the existing web where you create own ‘pods’ (personal data store). You decide where this pod will be hosted, who will access which data element and how the data will be shared through this pod.
Berners-Lee believes that Solid will empower individuals, developers and businesses with entirely new ways to conceive, build and find innovative, trusted and beneficial applications and services.
Developers need to integrate Solid into their apps and sites. Solid is still in the early stages so there are no apps for now but the project website claims that “the first wave of Solid apps are being created now.”
Berners-Lee has created a startup called Inrupt and has taken a sabbatical from MIT to work full-time on Solid and to take it “from the vision of a few to the reality of many.”
If you are interested in Solid, learn how to create apps or contribute to the project in your own way. Of course, it will take a lot of effort to build and drive the broad adoption of Solid so every bit of contribution will count to the success of a decentralized web.
Do you think a decentralized web will be a reality? What do you think of decentralized web in general and project Solid in particular?
https://itsfoss.com/solid-decentralized-web/
This is still far in the future but the basic concept does not seem that different from diaspora* or any of the pod implementations in the Federation or the Fediverse.
But if you are a programmer this might be the opportunity to get the right set of features in.
Originally shared by Greg Batmarx
Creator of the world wide web, Tim Berners-Lee has unveiled his plans to create a new decentralized web where the data will be controlled by the users.
Tim Berners-Lee is known for creating the world wide web, i.e., the internet you know today. More than two decades later, Tim is working to free the internet from the clutches of corporate giants and give the power back to the people via a decentralized web.
Berners-Lee was unhappy with the way ‘powerful forces’ of the internet handle data of the users for their own agenda. So he started working on his own open source project Solid “to restore the power and agency of individuals on the web.”
Solid changes the current model where users have to hand over personal data to digital giants in exchange for perceived value. As we’ve all discovered, this hasn’t been in our best interests.
Solid is how we evolve the web in order to restore balance , by giving every one of us complete control over data, personal or not, in a revolutionary way.
Basically, Solid is a platform built using the existing web where you create own ‘pods’ (personal data store). You decide where this pod will be hosted, who will access which data element and how the data will be shared through this pod.
Berners-Lee believes that Solid will empower individuals, developers and businesses with entirely new ways to conceive, build and find innovative, trusted and beneficial applications and services.
Developers need to integrate Solid into their apps and sites. Solid is still in the early stages so there are no apps for now but the project website claims that “the first wave of Solid apps are being created now.”
Berners-Lee has created a startup called Inrupt and has taken a sabbatical from MIT to work full-time on Solid and to take it “from the vision of a few to the reality of many.”
If you are interested in Solid, learn how to create apps or contribute to the project in your own way. Of course, it will take a lot of effort to build and drive the broad adoption of Solid so every bit of contribution will count to the success of a decentralized web.
Do you think a decentralized web will be a reality? What do you think of decentralized web in general and project Solid in particular?
https://itsfoss.com/solid-decentralized-web/
It is more than a concept. There are already applications in the alpha phase. solid.inrupt.com - Community | Solid
ReplyDeleteYes I've used it for a few weeks since I heard the news not too long ago. For now it still looks very much like a framework to build the next version of www or social media. I won't say it's still in alpha or beta because people with the right skill can use already it to create something but at this point most people including myself don't know what to do with it but I can see its potential.
ReplyDeleteSome more background. vanityfair.com - “I Was Devastated”: The Man Who Created the World Wide Web Has Some Regrets
ReplyDeleteTBL was an advisor, not founder.
ReplyDeleteNo he is not a founder of MeWe. They're just (ab)using his name.
ReplyDeleteGregory P. Smith Reference please?
ReplyDeleteThe MeWe crowdsourcing page does list him as an advisor, though I don't know if that's accurate.
As for Solid, the "decentralized web" is a fun fantasy.
ReplyDeleteI helped create a decentralized "put your own storage and computing online" open source based service in 1999-2001 (MojoNation). Its great grandchild lives on today (Tahoe LAFS). These have never been popular. The user experience just isn't good for all the reasons that should be obvious to anyone who understands latency and reliability and the economics of how they operate mean you'd wind up centralizing your "pods" on someone elses computer (cloud) anyways.
I'm a huge fan of the concepts. It's awesome technically we know how this can be done. But doing it en masse for everyone needs to be so transparent people don't even think about it. Like a dialtone (remember those?). Or todays equivalent: home wifi.
There are application specific use cases. They'll roll their own and be transparent. But that's a far cry from decentralized infrastructure being used to run everything.
Gregory P. Smith According to Tim Berners Lee they are not abusing his name, he actively recommends and supports mewe here is his tweet.
ReplyDeletetwitter.com - Tim Berners-Lee on Twitter
Edward Morbius Don't take any notice of the negative comment, Tim Berners Lee is an official consultant for mewe and a friend and colleague of Mark Weinstein the founder and CEO of mewe. He has endorsed mewe many times on twitter and in the media.
ReplyDeleteGregory P. Smith Criticism is a valid contribution here, but please keep it accurate and substantive.
ReplyDelete"The user experience just isn't good for all the reasons that should be obvious to anyone who understands latency and reliability and the economics of how they operate mean you'd wind up centralizing your "pods" on someone elses computer (cloud) anyways."
ReplyDeleteI find the above to be substantive and it certainly resonates with anyone who has attempted to solve this problem.
I'm a tad more optimistic though that we can still give it a few more tries before giving up. Or perhaps I'm just foolish. It however is obvious how people will centralize their data on even relatively unknown pods such as pluspora without thinking of potential consequences.
There are also a couple of ethical considerations that seem hard to address.
ReplyDeleteIn that infrastructure absolutely everything you post is owned by you. That includes comments in other’s posts. I consider those to be part of the common good, akin to peer review in science. The disappearance of pods will lead to the fragmentation of historical records.
When someone passes away, who owns the contents of their pod?
Edgar Brown the etymological root of "publish' is"'public".
ReplyDeletePonder.