So what is new here? Re: World of Ends

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

------ Forwarded Message
From: Einar Stefferud <Steflist () thor nma com>
Date: Fri, 07 Mar 2003 03:25:01 -0800
To: dave () farber net
Subject: So what is new here? Re: [IP] World of Ends

As a follower of paradigm shifting in the
Computing/Networking/Internetworking
world, I see that things have always been this way for some very obvious
reasons.

First, people, groups, populations, nations, and worlds only and always pop
from 
one paradigm to another, "One Mind At A Time", so naturally some minds pop
sooner and others later, and most minds pop sooner or later.

For a long time, Western Union folks thought they were the precursors of the
Internet, because hey thought they had invented Electronic Mail, when all
they 
had done was invent remote printing (or maybe it was really just remote
typing).

Mail is what happens when you create and envelope of content and had it over
in 
toto to a 3rd party that undertakes to deliver it to the designated
recipient,
without modification in transit.  Teletype started out as remote typing, and
then one day someone invented paper tape for capturing character strings as
Baudot Codes, and then someone invented a torn tape room, and initiated
store 
and forward teletype.

But, ARPANET MAIL was a paradigm sift, not a linear extension of teletype.
However, I will admit that when invented, Teletype machine had recently been
converted into computer terminals, thus confusing the teletype with the
ARPANET.

But, I am not writing here to castigate the Teletype folk.  Just to use them
as an example of the basic kind of way that people deal with new paradigms.
Some times they "get it" and sometimes they don't, so popping from one
paradigm to another looks like it is governed by some kind of probability
function.

There is even a popular theory about the rates of new technology adoption
graph 
looking like a "S" Curve that starts slowly and ramps up in the middle, and
then 
tapers off after the bulk of a user population has popped.  Lots of academic
research has been done in this field.

So, I suppose it is natural for some POPPED folk to to fell superior to the
un-POPPED folk.  

My view is that one should not despair of these things, because this is just
how 
life works.  But once popped, one might as well find other popped people to
work 
with;-)...  

And, If you find yourself catching new paradigms early enough, maybe you can
make 
a good living out of being popped early and often.

Just don't get lost in the future without a way to get back.

Cheers...\Stef
 

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