[NetBehaviour] An interview with Geert Lovink

[Randall Packer]

Rob, this is an interesting point and one I have been thinking a lot about: why are new media discussions using list software that is perhaps 20 years old, which don’t allow for the possibilities of embedded media, avatars, search, database, etc. (I know there is a Web version of this, but who looks at?) For me, there is a  paradox here. Many complain about the glut of email in their lives, and yet lists are perhaps the number one producer of email for those who subscribe to lists. Is it because email is still our main channel of communication, the go to for correspondence, discussion, social media notifications, etc? Matt Mullenweg, the founder of Wordpress, never uses email for business communication, rather P2, a bulletin board web-based interface where he can follow everyone’s conversations in a threaded, searchable environment. He claims this to be the future of social networks, and I tend to agree, but it takes commitment among the community to learn to use the new tools. I am not condemning listserves here, they serve a great purpose and they are super-easy to use. However, we all have to admit it is an antiquated system and there is no reason really not to overhaul the whole thing and move into the 21st century. 

OK, I expect to be heavily criticized here, but that’s my position. :)



On 10/1/15, 10:41 PM, "Rob Myers" <netbehaviour-bounces at netbehaviour.org on behalf of rob at robmyers.org> wrote:

>On 01/10/15 02:21 AM, ruth catlow wrote:
>> 
>> But I too have had a feeling of un-ease about a disconnect with the
>> conversations that happen here on the list. This list is one of my
>> favourite places, and yet I find it hard to advocate for it, to people
>> who are not already here. Perhaps because email has now acquired toxic
>> associations for many people because of the demands it places on
>> 'immaterial labourers'.
>
>They're all exploited via apps now aren't they? :-)
>
>At the risk of solutionism, modern discussion systems provide web forum
>-style interfaces to mailing lists (and vice versa).
>
>https://www.discourse.org/
>
>http://groupserver.org/
>
>- Rob.
>
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