This feels like a troll, but I'll respect anyone with a Karma of 996 and try my best to answer the question. First, it's important to watch the Google Video in which the product is introduced. Wave creates a new family of application categories. Etherpad is just one _instance_ of one _particular_ application category.
My elevator pitch (probably inaccurate, but it's mine) - "Real Time multi-way fedreated communication that creates secure rich-format conversation." It's the Real-Time element + the Multi-Way + the fact that people can drop in on conversations later on that make it exciting. What got people excited was the open-source nature plus (if I'm not mistaken in my memory) the decentralized aspect - multiple organizations could run their own wave server, so these conversations could be kept entirely internal, or interoperate with external Wave servers. It has elements of IRC, Instant Messaging, E-Mail, Lotus Notes, and WIKIs all rolled into one.
Thanks. I can see it's a faster, more interactive and dynamic version of a wiki (plus other stuff) - and speed-increases tend to be popular. It's a logical tech progression, but I'm not sure it solves a problem.
You mention Lotus Notes: I seem to recall reading Lotus Notes was a cool idea ("groupware") that didn't take off despite passionate proponents, and that it lead to Lotus being vulnerable to being bought by IBM and... ceasing to exist. Maybe today's tech foundation (HTML, web, etc) and now-online target market will cause a different outcome.
I hesitate a little when software is announced before it is released (e.g. google was just released); and when something is presented as a universal solution (but neither of these prove anything).
I think it must solve a problem that I personally don't have, so that explains my (personal) lack of excitement (note: many things have had massive success that I haven't been excited about, so this isn't a criticism of the tech). I tried to watch the Video of it, but it just didn't grab me enough to keep watching (again, just my personal reaction). Perhaps my perspective is really "we had non-interactive email... and we liked it!" and "get off my lawn".
PS: Re "troll". I thought I was asking a straightforward question, though skeptical. Observation: if a non-enthusiast's innocent request about a tech feels like a troll to that tech's proponents, it forms a barrier for adoption beyond the proponents. Not judging, just noting.
Re karma: I periodically start a new account on HN, because I believe karma distorts perceptions. Luckily I didn't ask this question at the start of a new account, or (it seems) I would have been dismissed as a troll.
The video answers your questions, though, so I'd highly recommend you stick through it if this is a topic you're at all interested in enough to inquire about. It's harder to explain in a convincing way and if the video doesn't excite you then our descriptions absolutely won't.
There's only so much of "new way of collaboration and communication" buzzspeak you can read in comments before it sounds like the same ol' thing. When I saw the video, it really hit home (for me) how this could really improve how I collaborate with my company (and friends) online. If the client, especially, is done right, that is.
Comments
This feels like a troll, but I'll respect anyone with a Karma of 996 and try my best to answer the question. First, it's important to watch the Google Video in which the product is introduced. Wave creates a new family of application categories. Etherpad is just one _instance_ of one _particular_ application category.
My elevator pitch (probably inaccurate, but it's mine) - "Real Time multi-way fedreated communication that creates secure rich-format conversation." It's the Real-Time element + the Multi-Way + the fact that people can drop in on conversations later on that make it exciting. What got people excited was the open-source nature plus (if I'm not mistaken in my memory) the decentralized aspect - multiple organizations could run their own wave server, so these conversations could be kept entirely internal, or interoperate with external Wave servers. It has elements of IRC, Instant Messaging, E-Mail, Lotus Notes, and WIKIs all rolled into one.
Thanks. I can see it's a faster, more interactive and dynamic version of a wiki (plus other stuff) - and speed-increases tend to be popular. It's a logical tech progression, but I'm not sure it solves a problem.
You mention Lotus Notes: I seem to recall reading Lotus Notes was a cool idea ("groupware") that didn't take off despite passionate proponents, and that it lead to Lotus being vulnerable to being bought by IBM and... ceasing to exist. Maybe today's tech foundation (HTML, web, etc) and now-online target market will cause a different outcome.
I hesitate a little when software is announced before it is released (e.g. google was just released); and when something is presented as a universal solution (but neither of these prove anything).
I think it must solve a problem that I personally don't have, so that explains my (personal) lack of excitement (note: many things have had massive success that I haven't been excited about, so this isn't a criticism of the tech). I tried to watch the Video of it, but it just didn't grab me enough to keep watching (again, just my personal reaction). Perhaps my perspective is really "we had non-interactive email... and we liked it!" and "get off my lawn".
PS: Re "troll". I thought I was asking a straightforward question, though skeptical. Observation: if a non-enthusiast's innocent request about a tech feels like a troll to that tech's proponents, it forms a barrier for adoption beyond the proponents. Not judging, just noting.
Re karma: I periodically start a new account on HN, because I believe karma distorts perceptions. Luckily I didn't ask this question at the start of a new account, or (it seems) I would have been dismissed as a troll.
The video answers your questions, though, so I'd highly recommend you stick through it if this is a topic you're at all interested in enough to inquire about. It's harder to explain in a convincing way and if the video doesn't excite you then our descriptions absolutely won't.
There's only so much of "new way of collaboration and communication" buzzspeak you can read in comments before it sounds like the same ol' thing. When I saw the video, it really hit home (for me) how this could really improve how I collaborate with my company (and friends) online. If the client, especially, is done right, that is.