Friday, February 27, 2004Continue to rock, add one, shake and loop.
I've found a bug in the ENT 1.0 module driver for RSS topics included in enhancedAggregator's first release.
The fix involved splitting the module handling code between the cloud script, which compiles ent:topic elements into a table inside each item of the subscribed RSS 2.0 service's compilation table, and a new storyArrived callback script, responsible for storing the compiled topics inside the aggregator's stories table, the base upon which Radio creates its desktop website News page.
This appears to be the correct way to support an RSS 2.0 module in Radio, conforming to the way the main content aggregator is designed. Unfortunately, the storyArrived callback script cannot have access to the module's item level compiled elements, due to the way the xml.rss.compileService script is currently coded. I hope a fix, or an alternate way of implementing the module driver, will soon be released by Userland.
Current users of the enhancedAggregator tool should update their copy, by either clicking the update link in Radio's desktop home page status center, or selecting the enhancedAggregator/update menu option in the Radio application, or simply downloading the new version.
I've received a fair number of inquiries about the tool's inner working, I'll try to come up with a visitor's guide to the code over the week-end, to supplement the current guidelines.
Developers who wish to publish their own updates to the enhancedAggregator project should contact me to retrieve the host address and port number of the project's webEdit server, as well as their username and password. If they haven't done so already, they can activate the webEdit client in their copy of Radio by running the enhancedAggregatorSuite.webEdit.activate script.
Given the current proliferation of RSS modules, I hope the enhancedAggregator will soon become a repository of drivers, allowing Radio users to experiment with the latest trends in Web content syndication.
[s l a m]Even YOU can have your own Technorati web service!
The Internet Archive has an open source spider (and there are others - as well.)
Just imagine all the cool stuff you can 'harvest'?
Proliferation of Blog Crawlers.
The traffic to my blog has doubled in the past two months. While some of that is due to new readers and subscribers, good part of that traffic is due to blog crawlers. With the smell of money in the air, I am afraid we'll be seeing an explosion of blog crawlers in the near future.
How long before only a tiny fraction of the traffic is actually read by a person? How long before the blogosphere is swamped by convenience-driven waste and greed-driven abuse?
This seems really cool. These new kinds of servers are gonna be a key part of our collective future.
The 1060 REST microkernel and XML app server. 1060 NetKernel Suhail Ahmed alerted me, via email, to a really interesting project called NetKernel, from 1060 Research. The docs describe it as "a commercial open-source realisation of the HP Dexter project." Here's the skinny:
Today's Web-servers and Application Servers have a relatively flat interface which creates a hard boundary between Web and non-Web. This boundary defines the zone of URI addressable resources.What if, indeed? I downloaded the 20MB NetKernel JAR file, installed the system, and took it for a spin. Fascinating concept. As advertised, it offers a suite of XML services -- including XSLT, and the Saxon implementation of XQuery -- in a composable architecture based on URIs. These include the familiar http: and file: plus NetKernel's own active: which is a URI scheme for NetKernel processes scheduled by the "REST microkernel." ... [Jon's Radio] [Ted Ritzer: BizBlog]
What if the REST interface (URI address space) didn't end at the edge of your external interface?
NetKernel uses REST-like service interfaces for all software components. The services are fully encapsulated in modules which export a public URI address space. A module may import other module's address spaces, in this way service libraries may be combined into applications. [NetKernel Essentials]
It's a rare day that something this nice happens.
Jason DeFillippo's Blogrolling.com is one of those diamond's in the rough, percolating up underneath the surfac - waiting for funding and support. Now it has it!
Elliot and Ross and are gonna do right by Jason - and that rocks!
I wonder if they're interested in the strategy and ideas I developed for Jason -just about a year ago?
They could also morph this - with Laszlo - as well.
Here's Ross announcement....
Tucows Acquires Blogrolling.com.
You may have already read the press release or a blog entry somewhere else - the rumors are true, Tucows has indeed purchased the assets of Blogrolling.com from Jason DeFillippo.
I'm really glad we got together with Jason and were able to come to a deal. I've been a Blogrolling.com user almost as long as I've been a blogger and this really is a nifty service. Jason felt it was time to move on to other things and we knew that Blogrolling.com is a service worth continuing with and expanding. A definite match.
The service isn't going anywhere and we're not turning into some "Blogware only" proprietary mess. The Tucows ZenKeepers would take away my spots if I tried to do that (or let that happen). We're looking to go in exactly the opposite direction. My goal is to make Blogrolling.com even more useful to webloggers, weblog tool developers and weblog resellers. We will do this by opening it up more than it already is and ensure basic win-wins for everyone.
I'm really looking forward to building on Jason's great work. He's done an excellent job carving out a niche for the service and really giving his subscribers a great tool. His innovative and customer-centric philosophy will always guide our management of this nifty service moving forward.
And, if it appears that we might be straying away from this ideal, be sure to let me know.
On the other hand, if have no idea what Blogrolling.com is, now would be a great time to check it out. The basic service is free and it couldn't be easier to integrate into your website. I;ll bet if you ask AccordionGuy nicely, he'll post some nifty instructions describing how to make it work with Blogware ;)
[Random Bytes]
Demir Barlas writes that Miller & Chevalier, a Washington, D.C. law firm, has installed Interface Software’s Social Networking system to connect their ~120 lawyers and professionals. Not likely bedfellows but the utilization of Interface’s solution has, according to Sturgis Sobin, chairman of the international department of Miller & Chevalier, created new business: “In the past year, we’ve had a couple of instances where the software identified an existing relationship we’d never have been aware of otherwise,” says Sobin. “One of those engagements generated more than a million dollars in new business.” A most practical application of Social Networking Services [The Social Software Weblog]
Marc's bit....
Yet another example of social networking as a feature, not a stand alone market. Maybe eventually hopefully like soon enough some day folks will stop trying to ask "how do you make money from social networking" and instead will say "what can I use social networking for?"
In other words - as danah likes to say - What's the Context?
Laszlo Mugs
We recently wrapped up version 2.0 of the Laszlo Presentation Server. In celebration of the new components, I opened a couple of Cafe Press stores to special-order some custom Laszlo schwag. It was a fun excuse to check out Cafe Press. Its an amazing business where you can create your own T-shirts, mugs or whatever with custom graphics. The site is very easy to use and I highly recommend it.
So... the stores are open and mugs are sold at cost. I'm posting links here for Laszlovians, Laszlo developers and other fans.
available at http://www.cafeshops.com/laszlofanclub [Sarah Allen's Weblog]
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