Early days of a revolution are upon us...
Google Wave is one of those things where by it's early days and it's applications are still being discovered by users. There's a lot of "So what?!" and "Now what?!" by people still. But there in lies the beauty of it for me. At the moment it's usefulness is a growing unknown.
Have you heard of Chrome OS?
See the implications of this? Looking ahead to the future of operating systems, such as Chrome, and the current trend of developing a whole range of mobile devices, the integration and ability to communicate collaboratively without bulky software and downloads has a lot of potential... so, while some may see it as "pointless crap", the future is there to be explored, it's ours for the taking and the future can be what we want it to be.
Have you seen those paper thin and fully flexible screens? They are amazing.
Add to them touch technology, wifi, no bulky operating system and small solid state or online storage and you have an amazing device that could be just as revolutionary as paper. And all this from technology that didn't exist to the public as little as 7 years ago. And that's what Wave is about. It's available to the public (via invitation, which I might add is becoming readily available) to experiment with. It's still in development.
So while you may not see a useful application for Google Wave, I do. Imagine how easy and fun planning a holiday would be with mates if you were all online together sharing ideas, viewing places on maps, looking at alternate routes, marking dates on a shared calendar, talking to hotels or venues or booking seats all while not waiting for return emails. Imagine viewing an artist's work online and being able to share it with your group of like minded friends, and have them share more cool inspiration back (without email!). Imagine listening to a tune and being able to share it as a file or played in real-time online with mates. How about this one: Imagine real-time blogging, where you can interrupt me and say "hey, hang on, you're wrong there... or Shit Muz, that flashing Daily Mug Shot thing in the side bar is REALLY annoying!!..."
What's common about these applications? Human relationships... and now online they are no longer passive.
The technology is there. The applications of this technology are yet to be discovered. But savvy people are out there, on the ball, exploring and above all imagining. Like any application, don't use it if you don't want to. Hey, some people didn't think the telephone was useful for the mass public at first. Some people don't use dvd players or microwaves (and some even self righteously look down on those who do. Something I could never begin to understand). But they are available if you want one. I'm finding the move to a more social internet very interesting and entertaining.
Early days of a revolution are upon us.
posted by Muzbot at 7:39 AM
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