The WELL: inkwell.vue.427: Cyrus Farivar "The Internet of Elsewhere" Nov 28th - Dec 8th

#30: Ted Newcomb (tcn) Thu 8 Dec 11 03:01

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 03:01:00 PST

<28> Thanks for fleshing that out a bit Jon....in re-reading your comment it occurred to me that something else is going on as we expand our reach and consciousness globally, we are, at the same time, becoming more locally focused; city states, with strong mayors, and locally resilient communities. Both expansive and contractive movements seemingly reinforcing one another. [Read entire topic]

#29: Ted Newcomb (tcn) Tue 6 Dec 11 12:41

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:41:00 PST

From today's Guardian...http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/dec/06/south-korea-hacking-problems

South Korea discovers downside of high speed internet and real-name postings Botnets, hacking and the exposure of personal details are price of having superfast internet

One of the planet's most connected countries, South Korea, is also plagued by hacking and data theft and is the Asia-Pacific's leading host of P2P "botnets"*compromised, internet-connected computers typically used for illegal activities. Lightning-fast broadband and obligatory real name verification have a downside. [Read entire topic]

#28: Jon Lebkowsky (jonl) Mon 5 Dec 11 05:45

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 05:45:00 PST

That's a good question, Ted. We organized nation-states when communication was scarce and coordination was inherently limited. The Internet shows us that any "community" is actually a community of communities; within any nation-state there can be, as you say, a multiplicity of cultures. Can the Internet facilitate new, better modes of organization? Do we have our heads around the transformative potential? What stakeholders stand to lose in this sort of transformation, and how are they reacting? (Think Occupy, Tahrir)... [Read entire topic]

#27: Ted Newcomb (tcn) Mon 5 Dec 11 03:01

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 03:01:00 PST

Is the internet moving us beyond nation states - not replacing them, but forming another layer of global relationships? Your book focuses on how the internet collides in differing ways with nations. At the same time it seems fair to say that an internet or cyber culture is evolving and emerging that is extra-national as users come on line. It may be more fair to say a multiplicity of cultures are evolving; it's hardly heterogeneous. Any thoughts on the process and where it might take us? Or is that too speculative in these early stages? [Read entire topic]

#26: Jon Lebkowsky (jonl) Sun 4 Dec 11 19:51

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 19:51:00 PST

Do you find that the connections formed online by people in a very wired, technologically sophisticated country like Korea have more depth than those formed online in a a country with more limited capability and adoption, like Senegal? [Read entire topic]

#25: Cyrus Farivar (cjfarivar) Sun 4 Dec 11 13:33

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 13:33:00 PST

Jon:

Your point is well taken. I think that like-minded people find each other in my four countries just like they find each other anywhere else -- whether online or offline. That is, through Facebook groups, blogs, community sites, friends and family.

I think though, that each language has it's main online forums. In Korea, that's usually Cyworld (although that may be supplanted by Facebook these days), and Senegal sites like seneweb.com, and Iran sites like Balatarin.com (similar to Digg), and Estonia -- honestly I'm not sure that there's a dedicated Estonian hangout.

I think that in a place like Iran, where speech is so restricted domestically, that Iranians you find online speaking out from my impression, would be members of the diaspora. (That said, I have no way to actually prove this.) [Read entire topic]

#24: Jon Lebkowsky (jonl) Sun 4 Dec 11 07:00

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 07:00:00 PST

Cyrus, your comment makes me think about the early days of the Internet, before mainstreaming. We could see that there was a potential community forming - geeks of a particular mindset that guided them to the Internet, where they became early adopters and started to connecting with each other and evolving communities. The surge in participation here on the WELL after it connected to the Internet (around 1990) was a good example. Mainstreaming of the Internet, especially high adoption by marketing entities and sales-focused individuals, has meant substantial noise and distraction in the cyberspace environment - quite noticeable in the U.S. Communities and conversations seem more fragmented, more conversation is "drive by" as on Twitter and Facebook. Wondering how this is playing out globally, in th parts of the world where you've focused? How well can like-minded people find each other in Korea, Estonia, Iran, and Senegal, for instance? Where are they hanging out, what kinds of conversations do they value? [Read entire topic]

#23: Ed Ward (captward) Sat 3 Dec 11 10:09

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 10:09:00 PST

I should also take this opportunity to remind people not on the Well that you can send in questions for Cyrus to inkwell@well.com and we'll post 'em as soon as we can -- sometimes immediately. [Read entire topic]

#22: Cyrus Farivar (cjfarivar) Sat 3 Dec 11 08:00

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 08:00:00 PST

Sorry, ignore that last sentence. ("Is that a fair recap? And would you please speak to that?") I copied/pasted for my own reference. [Read entire topic]

#21: Cyrus Farivar (cjfarivar) Sat 3 Dec 11 07:59

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 07:59:00 PST

Jon:

I think Koreans do take their connectivity somewhat for granted. It's just a feature of modern Korea now. Similarly, I think Estonians assume that WiFi is free everywhere. ("What do you mean I have to pay for WiFi?") I think that it shapes the culture in many good and bad ways that I discuss in the book, like a vibrant tech community, gaming and its own unique social networking.

Ted:

I think your interpretation is spot on. I don't know that the Internet is an inherent force for good that is deterministic -- eg, it may not necessarily be an automatically good thing that more Internet is coming to China. Higher Internet usage does not equal more democracy, necessarily.

That being said, I think that there is a certain Internet-savvy, English-speaking community of people that can and have found each other online in an entirely new way. This is amplified through social media, of course, but also through organizations like Pecha Kucha, Global Voices (globalvoicesonline.org), Startup Weekend and many others. I think the fact that I can easily find even a small handful of like-minded, under-30, English-speaking geeks online in practically any corner of the world speaks to this sub-group that is starting to form.

Is that a fair recap? And would you please speak to that? [Read entire topic]