Discussions at Kinnernet 2008
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Future of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
The academic field of HCI is going through many changes. Last week a report I contributed to was published by Microsoft Research UK with a vision of HCI towards the year 2020 (the report is called Being Human). I would like to present/share some of the report's arguments and discuss:
- can HCI research promote radical innovation in the way we interact with computers?
- how relevant is HCI as a research discipline?
- can HCI serve as a platform for industry/academic collaboration?
- what is the appropriate training/education to become an HCI expert?
- how do we create an active HCI community in Israel, and increase the visbility of Israeli HCI research & innovation in international conferences?
I will have a few hard copies of the report as giveaways, the report was beautifully printed as a coffee-table book.
The report, edited by Richard Harper, Abigail Sellen, Tom Rodden, and Yvonne Rogers, is available online at: http://research.microsoft.com/hci2020/
Facilitated By Oren Zuckerman
Likely Participants?: Shimon Schocken, Yoram Yaacovi
WTF?! Do we really use computers like we want to?
How much of our interaction with comptuers and the web today is focused on our needs as people sharing and changing content? Isn't it time for a paradigm shift regarding the way we use our computers?
Without sliding to "Minority Report", this discussion will attempt to raise issues regarding the current way we work, and propose alternatives.
Teaser questions: Why do I need to save files?
Lead by: Eviatar Tron
Likely Participants?: Amnon Dekel, Yoram Yaacovi
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Organic AND Digital - contradiction in terms?
We all say "organic search results" and "organic traffic growth". What do we really mean? What does digital organic really stands for?
If U love the digital grid, as we do, grid you would want to plant trees on it and make it more beautiful, and not just build something for the sake of it, and leave it run alone.
Build something that blends in and effect the grid positively.
What is responsible digital construction?
Power Vs. Force - why you should energize the grid. How does a digital tree (web site) can have digital photosynthesise. Give and receive.
Short introduction and open discussion.
Lead by:Omri Dolev, Gil Rimon
Likely Participants?: Yael Givon,
The (un)Social Directory - 15:00 Friday in Casablanca
Within a few year, the directory paradigm as we know and hate it will invert. All contact will be permission-based. Traditional directories will be replaced by vectors to home contact records filtered by permissions granted on an individual basis. Exchanging business cards will mean exchanging permissions which are always revocable. We will no longer store dead copies of contact information but live links to the actual information which will be able to use as permitted but not to see or copy.
The crude permission-based directories of today's social networks are a prototype for this but are limited by their island nature. Nevertheless they are a critical step in the evolution from directories owned by service providers to directory entries owned by the individuals they point to.
What will the rest of the transition be? what are the other attributes of the (un)social directory?
Help build the transition strategy at this workshop
more here and here.
There is also a Kinnernet 2008 Group set up on Facebook to allow us to exchange (un)Social contacts. Should be a good way to keep in touch with new friends (and old) from Kinnernet. And part of the (un)Social Directory. The group is secret so contact me on Facebook(tevslin) or by email(tom@evslin.com) for an invite.
Led by: Tom Evslin
Social Media -- stitching the torn fabric of society.
Today's world is a troubled one. Between war torn regions, economic strife and just plain old social angst, there are many challenges. The good news is that technology is evolving to be the thread that can help knit these things back together.
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency has embraced in an internal reform to be more effective, less bureaucratic and move into the XXI century by engaging new technologies and social networks to address one of the world's most dire problems – people who are persecuted and are forced to leave their homes and countries. The global refugee crisis is not fading away. On the contrary, the combination of mega trends like environment, xenophobia, fundamentalism, war and conflict are going to increase the number of people on the move.
In this session, we'll be talking about the issue and brainstorming on some ways to tackle some of UNHCR's thorniest challenges through technology.
By Cathy Brooks and Claudia Gonzalez
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JOIN THE EMPLOYEE LED REVOLUTION
Discussion Group #1 Company as WIKI: True stories of how a Retailer
empowers employees to serve customers, transform the firm and capture growth!
Discussion Group #2 Special session where we'll share the secret sauce
behind enabling transformation and employee innovation through web 2.0
Lead by: Peter Hirshberg and Michele Azar
Likely Participants?: BT Gary, Itay Talgam
"Less is More" - Hacks sessions
Share your tips, observations and personal experience!
�
Examples can be from any domain : Software, UI Design, Art, Marketing, Blogging, Personal Life...whatever.�
Let's try to make is a cool learning session ->
Raising actual examples and use cases (that you've observed or did yourself), and dig a bit deeper into the process of trashing/ignoring/shelving your wonderful features and ideas in favour of a better product/creation.
Feel free to write your hacks topics below (using the lifehacker format).
Some Background References (add more if you know):
Unhost: Uri Levanon
Participants: Ohad Eder Pressman, Shimon Schocken, Alon Carmel, Amnon Dekel
Hacks List:
- Intriguing reading using Venn Diagrams in VeryShortList [Email Newsletter] (uri)
- some less-is-more algorith-tricks (Shimon Schocken)
* Using frameworks as rapid development booster for your website
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Future of Music
2007 was the year Radiohead did their famous Internet trial but caved in and later distributed their album through a label. Madonna left Warners after 24 years in favor of a deal with a concert promoter, and Paul McCartney left EMI after 45 (!) years in favor of the Starbucks label.
Record labels are dying. DRM is becoming a thing of the past. Is this a victory for the online consumer? Will he ever get used to paying for music again? Who will beat iTunes' hegemony in sales of music downloads?
Lead by: Ayelet Yagil
Participants: Uri Levanon, Ittai Golde, Amnon Dekel, Yoram Yaacovi
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Creative Thinking: Innate or Exnate?
To what extent is creativity dependent on our innate abilities, and to what extent can it be taught?
- Does our school system ruin the innate creativity of our children? What can we be doing about that?
- Are some creativity methodologies better than others?
- Is there an IQ for creativity? Should there be?
- Are lefties more creative because of brain hardwiring or because they are forced to cope with challenges growing up? Or is the stuff about lefties being more creative just bullshit?
�Background:
In 2006, we were asked to give a course on multidisciplinary creative thinking (in English, of all things) at the Afeka engineering college in Tel Aviv. It turned out to be a lot of fun, with some 40 clever Engineering students in attendance. During preparation of the course, we were amazed to see how many methods of creating thinking are out there (many dozens, some developed locally). So, to add to the confusement, we developed yet another one and called it 48create.
Plumber-in-residence: Mel Rosenberg
Thinkers and others: Hagai Cohen, Amnon Dekel
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How to use google/yahoo/amazon... as platforms to jumpstart your start-ups infrastructure needs
all the above companies have spent billions in building infrastructure to scale. now they are opening it up as platforms. as a startup you can utilize these platforms to save big $$$ on your infra spend as well as R&D and your engineer's focus at the critical stage of building functionality and business model.
participants: Nir Bar-Lev (Google), Gil Ben-Artzi (Yahoo), Alon Carmel, Rob Kniaz (Google)
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The End of Cubicles
Design the workplace for collaboration.The online world has changed the way people communicate and share knowledge. Communication and collaboration is what we do all the time.
The organizational structure, on the other hand, hasn’t changed since the end of the 19th century and is still based on hierarchies, command chains, close offices, narrow cubicles and internal barriers.
What should be the best way to design both online and offline office space that match the notion of contant communication, networking and accessibility?
Engagement officer: Sagi Chemetz
Likely Participant: Yoram Yaacovi
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Size, Scale and Specification: Taking your startup out of the garage
How to grow from 5-10 people around an idea to a 20-30 people operation?
We'll describe some cases, and discuss challenges of growing a team, particularily in bootstraps operations - everyone's welcome to bring their cases and experiences!
Yael Givon, Ariel Yarnitsky, Oded Vardi, Ohad Eder Pressman
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Solving the Privacy Dilema
In the era of Facebook and Myspace, is privacy is really that big of a deal also for today teenagers and tomorrow consumers?
In the era of tracking, behavioral targeting and constant advertising how should people feel safe about their privacy?
And who should protect us from ourselves? Is it the IAB? The big companies? Or us?
In this session we will try to understand the issues around modern privacy and come up with creative solutions to the conflict between people privacy concerns and the need of advertisers and web sites to track us all.
Lead: You
Looking for Solution: Shahar Nechmad
Mountain Biking Therapy: Lessons from the Field
In 2006 I've started a mountain biking group for young convicts in a correction facility. After riding with the group every week for the last 18 month I've accumulated some anecdotes, insights, and video clips about the use of extreme sports for rehabilitation. A laugh-and-cry session.
Lead: Shimon Schocken
Fish with Bicycles: Future Personal Transportation
Millions of commuters use electric vehicles on daily basis. Science fiction? Futurism? Today's China? Well, pretty much all of the above. We'll speculate about mixing the following ingredients:
What comes out is so disruptivly delicious... take a look at the visuals.
Lead: On with active help from Ron A.
Startup Hackathon
A special experiment to come up with the next big thing in 45 minutes.
We will go from choosing an idea to brainstorm to architecture of the next hot startup in the valley. Come up with ideas for services that are missing, things that will improve your life or just cool ideas that can change the world.
Lead: Shahar Nechmad
Reality is a lie - Opt out / reflections from Azeroth
A badly designed, poorly maintained consensual hallucination that you don't have to be a part of anymore.
Examples, lessons and exercises to help you quit.
Lead: Zerdon Eleris
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Digital world requires a Digital Cortex
or "from Porn to Artificial Intelligence in 20 slides"
Rafael Mizrahi
We are surrounded by a variety of visuals, such as Computers, TV adds, video games, billboards, internet, and of course physical world.
Attention and Attraction is the cognitive process of selectively concentrating on one thing while ignoring other things. Where and how do we look and what do we find attractive?
How does Design can be improved by putting together NeuroBiology, Cognitive science, Neural Networks and Composition rules?
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How to get Advertisers to pay for your start-up?
Many Web 2.0 start-ups have advertising as their revenue line...but too often not enough understanding about what advertisers and agencies want from them. This discussion will cover some of these areas? What do advertisers want online? And how is this changing? Whether to go direct to clients or via agencies?
Why don't you add other topics you'd like to cover?
Mark Read, WPP and others --- I hope....
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How do you say World Wide Web in Arabic? الشبكة العنكبوتية العالمية
Arabic is the 4th most spoken language in the world. Almost 50�f Arabic speakers are under 18.
We will overview the Arab Internet and try to address the following questions, and possibly more:
- Does the internet in Arabic look the same as anywhere else? (hint: NO!)
- What are the most visited websites, and why?
- Is there an "Arab" user or each country is different?
If you have specific questions you would like us to cover, please feel free to edit the wiki!
Lead: Saher Esmeir, Ala Shiban, Sami Abboud
Where Content Meets Technology:
The New Media Paradox - Creative Destruction or
The Disruptive Tech Dilemma.
In recent years, traditional media players have got themselves heavily involved in the internet and Cellular worlds of content and applications. Paradoxically, these mediums are increasingly posing a challenge to the classical paradigms on which "old media" is based: Control over the creative and production process is being decentralized, distribution models are being challenged, the role of the editor - tackled.
Is "Old Media" digging it's own grave? Is it economically sensible for the established media companies to be helping out these new startups that are challenging them? What is the role for the 'old media" in the emerging media ecosystem? Does the creation, distribution and consumption patterns change or re-enforce themselves in the internet?
Lead: Ami Giniger together with Nimrod Koslowsky and Uri shinar
Electronic Books
Falied attempts to build and sell electronic books outnumber the failed Mars missions. Still, we keep trying.
Reading technologies keep improving. Still people, unless they are computer geeks, won't buy electronic books.
Forests disappear every day. Still, nada.
Will electronic books ever happen?
Open discussion moderated by: Yoram Yaacovi Some circa-1998 electronic books will be at hand to touch. and maybe read from. if i can figure out how to power them up...
Participants:
Building and Running Successful Software Development Teams
What does it take to build and run a successful software development team?
Can we learn from successful projects? Can we learn from successful projects in other industries?
Participants should bring tips and stories from their own experience and contribute to the common wisdom.
And just to generate some interest and talkbacks, is the below a successful software development team?
Open discussion moderated by: Yoram Yaacovi Participants:
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Reflections of 2007: Please add your 2008 stuff above �
Real Fake Money - Companies becoming rulers of 3D countries
People now regularly buy a "virtual" islands in Second Life for list price 1,675 US$ (up from 1,250$), and auctions generate 100,000 US$ for a spacestation and 26,500 US$ for an island in Entropia.? With some of the inhabitants rent out this real estate, effectively generating a market of land rentals to those who can't afford buying while others create businesses like night and sex clubs. In World of Warcraft, you have people in China mining game gold to be exchanged for "real" money.
Because the game money and land can be directly (there is an exchange rate!) converted to real $$$, Linden Lab and Mindark are able to print money.
Are we going towards Snow Crash? Are these companies becoming the rulers of states? Can we open a casino in those "countries" and enjoy a legal status? Brave new world...
Participants: Eden Shochat, Ilan Greicer, Ron Atazky,.... (can Nic Fulton join - "of course I can - let me know how to stop it clashing with the 'how to look like you know what you are talking about' session..." - BTW - who is running this session? - err, did I really say that?) Cristiana Falcone (ciao!), Lior Katz, Roostam Tiger, Nic Fulton.
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Digital Lifestyle Aggregation
Portals 2.0.? Whether it be full featured social networks (which feature blogging and other 'killer app features'), blogging platforms per se, IM aggregation plays, dashboards, or other new kinds of services - its clear that web sites which serve as 'start pages' - have highly evolved and taken on several new 'lives of their own'.? Combining social networking, aggregation, media managementand sharing, blogging and IM creates a rich environment - which end-users have been flocking to - and which will serve as a future model for 'brands' and content players to present 'customer facing user interfaces'.? What are the standards that can inter-connect these new platforms - together?? How can small independent players around the world - stay in business - in the midst of huge companies who wish to dominate?
Lead by: Marc Canter
Participants: Cristiana Falcone__Nic Fulton_______, Yoram Yaacovi
Unexpected strategies of making money from innovation
(and why patents and secrecy are mostly crap)
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What's the use in inventing and innovating, if at the end someone else makes the money? So instead of feeling sorry for yourselves, get some insights on what works and what doesn't, when it comes to protecting your innovations and making money from them.
(and: In Kinnernet 2004-6 I gave you the very popular series on the science of ripping of people, so I thought it was about time to come up with something new...and protect it)
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Presenter: Yochai Rafaeli (armed with favorite bits of his MBA lecturing arsenal and not so favorite bits of famous historic examples of innovation promises that flopped, and why)
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Wishing to attend (add your name here): nimrod lehavi, uri baruchin, Erez Chocva, Ittai Golde, Roostam Tiger
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The Tangible Web
Internet plagiarism (weblog posts, CSS design, academic research and even private flickr photos), online phishing fraud and the recent hijack of talkbacks and blogs by corporate PR (now called "splogs") create the impression that Web 2.0�is really a Baudrillard nightmare, all lies and simulacra.�But the contra-revolution is already building up. New forces are clearly emerging from the ruins�to create a new cultural environment I'll call The Tangible Web.�I'll try to demonstrate that Joost, street sticker art, Amazon's Real Name™, tripadvisor users' pics and a future Google project called "Books Online Access" are all early signs of a new trend, whose key words are Authenticity, Human Filterisation, Identity 2.0 and -- yes! --�old media sinergy.
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| World Wide Web | Web 2.0 | The Tangible Web |
| Webcams | YouTube | Joost! |
| Yahoo! index | Google Page Rank | Del.icio.us popularity |
| Columbia Reference Desk | Wikipedia | Google Online Access |
| Mp3.com | Napster | I-tunes |
| Forum nicknames | Splogs PR | Amazon True Name™ |
| Deviant Art | Fotolog | Sticker art |
| Registration | Participation | Authentification |
| Domain names craze | The Long Tail | Tangibility |
| Webshots | Flickr | Flickr Pro Friends Only |
Lead by:�Dov Alfon.�Participants:� Ayelet Yagil �
Between communication & experience: branding & interactive design
The interactive environment presents unique challenges for communicating through experience.
Over the last couple of years, "new paradigm" sites like Flickr and MySpace solve the tensions between brand and interactivity in a new way. A very short introduction followed by an open discussion about the dissolving borders between product, design, experience and communication.
Moderated by: Uri Baruchin
Participants: Jay Meydad , Deb Schultz, Roostam Tiger
How to Build Computer Games on a Computer that You Built
I describe and demo how my students built about 100 interactive games like Tetris, Snake and Pong on computers that they built themselves -- hardware and software -- in one semester.? The games are developed in a high-level Java-like language, yet the environment (an open-ended computer that can be explored and manipulated at any level of detail) lends itself to a wide variety of hacking, tweaking, and experimentation. And this, of course, has a significant educational virtue.
by: Shimon Schocken
Participants: Ittai Golde, ________________?
[Mobile] & [Internet] will they ever meet?
For the past 7 years we have been witnessing 2 intensifying streams going
some what in opposite directions in regards to Web "on the go";
1. Internet players want to become "Mobile" (Cellular speaking)
2. Cellular players want to offer "the Internet" to their users
The attempts of both player groups to try and apply their worlds onto the
realm of the other is creating an undefined battle ground called 'Mobile Internet'
At this discussion we will try to touch some points that relate to both worlds, including;
- Extending Web experiences into the Mobile realm & vise versa.
- Can a user 'Surf the Web' from a 2" - 3" screen? Do they want to?
- All for Free (or at least almost free) Vs. $$$ per data packet/content item.
- Open access Vs. Closed access.
- Bandwidth to go Vs. Web on the go
by: Felix Wunderer, Gilli Cegla
Participants: Yoram Yaacovi
Free and Fast Mobile Broadband?
While cellular data plans are still quite expensive, in the last year there has been a growing effort by several start-up companies to provide WiFi-based mobile connectivity at no charge for users.�It seems that soon enough we will have an abundance of free connectivity on-the-go.
This new connectivity can change the way we view and interact through the Internet.
The interesting question is what new and exciting applications are possible based on this emerging mobile infrastructure.
In this discussion we will:
- survey the�approaches that are used to provide the WiFi-based mobile connectivity.
- have an open discussion on the implications,�and
what new applications�would be possible in the very near future.
Moderated by: Elad Barkan
Participants: ?
Hate.com
For many years i dream about a site that need to be made to help us reach the unreached personal info that we always wanter like some juicy details about a Boss,teacher,politician,neigbour that will help us to control him/her/them. The solution is here but not ready yet,
by: Yariv Nachshon
Participants: __Nic Fulton - co-creator of (now defunct) DearNSA.com, Ittai Golde
Top 10 Next disruptive innovations:
What will be the next top 10 major disruptive changes/innovations that will occur until 2010 ...
by: Erez Chocva
Participants: Jay Meydad,Yoram Yaacovi
Here are some candidates:
--> Yellowpages books will disapear as local search sites improve ?
--> Lite apps ( e.g. Google Docs ) will eat into Microsoft Office ?
--> Voip (e.g. skype) will continue to 'eat' PSTN ?
--> Open source? versus proprietary software ?
--> Free411 versus 1$ per call 411
--> $100 laptop versus $1000 laptop
--> blogs on versus online news media sites (e.g. Cnet)
--> Printed Newspapers future ? will they grow or shrink...I think we will go back to rolled pergamena or digital papyrus...scroll down mode: bb style?(by Cristiana)
?--> Collaborative banking? will make you better offers than your bank? (by Tom)
Local Search
Piper Jaffray recently issued a 425 page which states:
Our 2006 Online Media Survey indicated that "local search was the second most popular online service."� ... only email was more popular ...
by: Erez Chocva
Participants:
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Mobile like never before
?
The mobile world is facing turmoil with the introduction of new converged devices such as Apple's iPhone and Rim's Blackberry Pearl.
The first part of the discussion will deal with current trends in the mobile industry (including tips from the 3GSM) and together we will point out the future trends.?
In the second part of the discussion we will learn about new and exciting data-entry technologies available for the mobile market (including demonstrations)
In the last?part of the discussion we?will?divide into groups, each group will?prototype the?future ultimate mobile device.
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Lead by: Oded Volovitz
Participants: dani vardi, Jay Meydad, Erez Chocva, Avi Shechter,Cristiana Falcone, amnon Dekel, Roostam Tiger
Music Discovery - it's paving the stones for digital music, but how to make it emotional ?
Most of us heard about Pandora, Last.fm, Musicstrands, finetune, iLike, Musicplasma and other services that are bursting each day and present new ways to find new music.
Music Discovery might be the holy grail of digital music - as the 2-way gateway for consumers to explore new artists and extend their playlists, and for artists to get exposure and experience new commerce channels.
The plan is to briefly go over the current methods (Statistical, Social, Music-DNA's, Genre sorting), emphasize some essential aspects why "Music Discovery" is so critical, and quickly turn into an open discussion about new ideas that focus on emotional and intriguing experiences.
The target is to hear as much as personal thoughts and views, and to tickle brainstorming for wild and quirky concepts.
Lead By: Uri Levanon
Participants:
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Advertising on MOBILE�
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Over 2 billion people have one, they look at it multiple times a day and you can actually know where they are when they use their mobile phone…. The question is: can a mobile phone successfully be used as an advertising channel? Will people tolerate advertising on their personal device? Who would be best positioned to make this happen – operators, software providers, search companies or start-ups?
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We’ll discuss the reality and hype of mobile advertising, the channels that are showing early success, what this means for start-ups that want to offer their product for free (subsidized by advertising) and have the group find innovative ways to make this happen.
�
Lead by: Nitzan Shaer
Participants: Alon Gal
The Social Web
You're welcome to add topics here. This will be an open discussion with different leads, about the different
and practical aspects of social interactions and user generated content on the web
Derivative Viral Growth – Yael Givon
The pros and cons of riding someone else's tide wave ??or ??how can you enjoy the tide of Skype, YouTube Flickr etc.
PGUC - Passively Generated User Content - Davidi Silberstein
"wisdom of crowds" vs. user generated content
Flickr as a social tool – Yael Givon
How online pictures change the offline social scene
From Pareto to the Long Tail and back – Yaniv Golan
The power of aggregation – from small building blocks to the Eifel Tower
The Arab world is making its move – Idan Feigenbaum
Latest trends in the Arab online world
TalkBack – history, present and future – Amit Jurgenson
How to get your house filled with people by writing three words
Gray Interaction - Maya Lotan
Virtual Worlds as full-emotion communities??- Nic Fulton
How Virtual Worlds and multiplayer games create community beyond that possible with the "flat" web.
The tail of creative ideas - is it long enough? - Roostam Tiger
Can we generate and enhance ideas using a web-based sharing and brainstorming on "underdog" ideas - those ideas we think we will never do anything with?
Did the Web 2.0 phenomena killed creativity�– Alon Gal
Long tail of abandoned "Fla
