Discussing the future and blogging.

Intro ramble...

First off, PearlTrees (aren't you sick of this topic?):  After trying to plug it into my blog via an IFRAME tag to integrate my mind/sitemap into the blog, I discovered that it was really lacking in scalability or flexibility.  The flash based client (that based on the the ability to download your tree is clearly based on RC3) has made me decide to investigate other solutions.  While I appreciate the PearlTrees community - I went there because ultimately I wanted a mind/sitemap for my blog.  I genuinely think that this convergent visual/semantic web organization is the correct path for knowledge management applications.  It's clear, it's concise and it can be constructed to expose something of an inner dialogue.

Speaking of, that is exactly what The Cogworkz (this blog) is.  My collected thought about the topics I'm exploring with comments (these entries).

As I keep pruning it and reorganizing my PearlTree like a bonsai, the tree comes to include blog entries as "thoughts on subjects" and other pearls with support materials and tools.  If you browse my PerlTree ("PearlTree sitemap on the right), not only will you get a feel for my take on blogging and things you can do with it...  but since I'm cloud focused, the Pearls will also contain the necessary tools to create, host, and share; all from within a browser.

The reason that I single out HTML5 and Javascript as the main players in the future of the web is simple, they are integrated into the browser.  These features are part of the browser "out of the box."  No plugins, addons, or extensions required.  "It just works."

Down this path 2 things happen.  1) Web becomes application becomes storage.  It is the great convergence. Web storage becomes user storage, API and application.  Web cache replaces disk cache.  Speaking of, want to speed up your browser?  I mean REALLY speed it?  Put your web cache on a SEPARATE dedicated drive (like a flash drive).  Break it off and keep it separate from the OS drive on a little dedicated drive.  It's basically doing the ReadyBoost trick but applying it ONLY to the browser (and give yourself a nice fat cache, 16 - 32gb means everything cached loads like lightening.  Well traveled pages will load nigh instantly.  It really revs up cloud applications as well - fast loading and responsive (important if you try any cloud based gaming).  Imagine that, there is someone in the world trying to tweak browser performance to enhance web based applications while trying to forego the desktop environment completely.

Hmm, it seems I've just described what Google's ChromeOS is trying to accomplish...  Operating system as browser.  There's a thought for another day, and another experiment.

So, why is it important to feed your browser its own resources?  Because the web is replacing the functionality of an operating system/applications.  When the applications can be delivered via browser, then every page is a potential Turing Machine.

If a page can be an application that can communicate, then the web becomes the next order, a Universal Machine.  And what follows is cloud as super computer.  Collective resource pools...  in a browser tab.

I'm calling you out Beowulf! Implement your client as a browser tab in HTML5 with WebSockets so that people can share resources to construct their own cloud.  Imagine CloudSeti@Home.  No software to install, just open the tab and leave it open.  Even in the background it could be sharing resources.  Want to quit sharing?  Close the tab.  Every online computer and network device in your house could all be sharing resources to create your own intranet supercomputer with only a web browser as the linking element.  How much easier could super computing be?

With social sites, any group could constitute an ad hoc super computer.

And how about using BitTorrent technology as a way to amplify a site.  So in the reverse of the current model in which a lot of web traffic means slow website...  with a torrent amplification model (users share browser cache as torrent) the more popular the site, the FASTER it loads!  Now consider working datasets as torrent resource for this ad hoc super computer?  The nodes would populate fast.

A killer application for a maligned technology.  Yet another topic, for yet another day!

With regards to blogging...

As someone who is growing older, I'm experiencing the shift between what psychology calls fluid and crystallized intelligence.  As you go along, it gets harder and harder to have an "ah ha" moment.  I find that being able to externally and visually see and manipulate the structure of subject matter I've recovered some of my old insight.  Exploring, writing and constructing the tree really helps me assemble concepts and put together (cloud based) function with knowledge.  And as a biproduct, I have this blog...

In a way, I feel like I'm waking up again after a very long slumber.  For me, being able to organize and "see" my thoughts is really helping me get back in the game, so to speak.

So how long have I been out?

Update 24-FEB-2011:

Funny...  so I write this blog entry yesterday and mention the elements of the future web to which I added WebGL to make use of local hardware acceleration.  And low and behold, today I read this.  That Google is on top of everything people don't realize they should be on top of...  and they're on with both feet.

And the sneaky part that's not sinking in at the right levels...  everything the Chrome browser gets becomes part of the ChromeOS.  So when ChromeOS hits, it will have a suped up Java VM, HTML5, integrated flash, integrated WebGL (brings 3D graphics to HTML5), integrated hardware acceleration.  This is precisely why I'm feeding this browser a flash drive for its web cache (rather than supplying the OS additional swap space).