Keyword ‘philosophy’

Critical Thinking

The Open/Closed Fight is About Philosophy, Not Facebook

May 4th, 2010 by Andrew Swenson

John Stuart Mill

image credit: openDemocracy

The catalyst

Not surprisingly, Facebook’s Open Graph has raised a series of complaints about lack of objective “openness” in the whole project.

After all, Facebook technically owns the protocol, the data, the access. But on the other hand, they’re giving the web a gift—a new understanding of the relationships not just between linked pages (like Google) but of the relationships between people who use those pages.

As TechCrunch’s MG Siegler reported, “Grab the popcorn. There is a serious nerd fight brewing.”

Critical Thinking

A Defense of Blogging

January 20th, 2010 by Andrew Swenson
Keyboard

image credit: Andrew*

Yesterday Rebecca Thorman contested that “bloggers are not writers” and “blogging is not writing.”

I happen to disagree, but this not really about disagreement. This is about rethinking our basic understanding of writing.

This is about boiling down the underlying implications of Thorman’s ideas in an effort to hold them, to examine them, to test them.

I’m deeply indebted to Thorman’s post and presentation as the start of this conversation, so first: Thank you Rebecca. And now to our point of departure…