Web 2.0时代信息的选择权和传播的多样化

2008-2-24 22:25:41
Web 2.0时代信息的选择权和传播的多样化
 　　互联网的迅猛发展为当代信息传播提供了一条崭新的途径，对传统的信息传播（电视、广播、报纸等）产生了强大的冲击，随着Web 2.0技术的不断发展，信息传播的方式在时间、空间、传播效率上已经渐渐确立了明显的优势，并逐步挑战和改变了传统行业，以惊人的速度渗透到社会的各个方面，改变着人类信息传播的模式。本文通过基于Web 2.0网络信息的传播技术，探讨一下信息选择和传播的多样化趋势。
用户（作者）的信息传播和分享
在Web 1.0的时代，信息传播的主流是各个大型的“门户网站”，大型门户网站拥有最大的话语权和信息资源，虽然BBS的出现实现了部分公众的有限的话语权，但其属于绝对的从属地位，在主流媒体的舞台前仅仅充当配角。
而Web 2.0时代的到来渐渐地改变了这一切，用户的角色开始被重新定位并发生变化，通过最新的Web 2.0技术，例如Blog、RSS、Wiki、Digg、Bookmark等等，用户可以获得在网上更多更好的传播、分享信息的自由，信息传播的成本变得非常低并且非常高效，这种新的信息传播对于依旧困守Web 1.0的大型门户来说形成了强烈的挑战。
在Web 2.0的信息传播过程当中，Rss和Tag是关键和核心。
TAG通常翻译为“标签”，是由用户自主定义的社会化分类，通过Tag人们可以方便地搜索到各种信息，并使得信息能够更有效的进行分类。RSS是一个Web 2.0站点发布和分享内容的简单高效的方法，标准化的格式利于信息的传播和再加工，大为降低了用户获取信息的成本。
Web 2.0时代的各种服务都是以用户为中心的，通过各种Web 2.0技术将用户的个人潜能发挥到了极致，极大地解放了个人的创作和贡献的能力，一个好的Web 2.0产品，能够充分地调动用户的积极性，不断分享和贡献个人的信息。
用户（读者）的信息选择权
在Web 1.0的模式下，用户没有选择权，门户网站提供什么内容，用户只能阅读什么内容，在Web 2.0时代，信息已经RSS化和TAG化了，用户就有了自己的信息选择权。
对于大量的RSS信息，用户可以通过很多种不同的方法进行订阅和选择，然后进行阅读和分享。
1、通过网站直接访问
2、通过在线阅读器
3、通过电子邮件阅读
4、通过手机阅读
5、通过其他方式阅读
由于RSS的出现，彻底改变了基于Web2.0的网络信息传播技术，人们获得信息的方式越来越多样化，虽然最主要的是通过WEB浏览器来直接访问某个网站来获得信息，但是新的WEB 2.0技术使得越来越多的更为有效的访问网站的方法已经出现了，这其中的一个核心就是RSS。
RSS的出现信息使得信息更加容易传播而难以被阻挡，RSS将博客内容通过全文RSS Feed发布出去，可以被FeedBurner烧制后再发布，人们可以使用在线阅读器看到，还可以使用电子邮件（rmail）阅读，还可以在手机上阅读，甚至在IM软件里也可以看到，即使打断了中间的几个环节（例如FeedBurner），信息依旧可以畅通无阻的传播，如果使用SSL，人们阅读信息甚至都无法被第三方监控。
从各种角度来说，在线阅读器（RSS Reader）都仅仅只是一个“阅读工具”而已，和传统的阅读工具不同的是，这个阅读工具是基于Web的，而不是基于客户端软件的，是基于SaaS的理念而实现的。
RSS阅读器在国内网络环境下的生存
在线阅读器（RSS Reader）在中国国内环境下发展一直都没有什么问题，国家有关部门也没有关注这类应用，从访问安全上看，Google Reader和Bloglines都提供了安全的https协议访问，对于这种加密的数据内容进行分析和解密简直是不可能的任务，因此通过自动分析数据包来控制这类应用也是难以实现的。
从技术角度上来看，大多数在线阅读器（RSS Reader）并没有将Feed内容定义为搜索引擎可索引的状态，这也是Google Reader和Bloglines至今都没有引起有关部门注意的原因。而国内某些在线阅读器却自找麻烦，主动将RSS Feed内容让搜索引擎索引，期望以此带来流量，结果反而带来版权争议和监管部门的注意，实在是无趣。
对于RSS抓取爬虫来说，遇到无法访问的FeedBurner等地址，通过编程的方法可以自动使用代理服务器或者其他方式抓取，这大概也是FeedBurner被封了这么长的时间，但是通过国内外绝大多数在线阅读器依旧可以正常阅读的一个原因。
最后提一下，isaacmao画了一张图，比较形象的说明了Web 2.0下各种软件应用在读者和作者之间的联系，可供参考。
Micropipeline as unblockable infrastructure
 
As more and more people are now on various social applications(over 10 types of such Social Software), Micro-pipeline is also emerging to show how information can flow over different kinds of social application from people to people in a more efficient way than traditional media.  We can predict that "Micropipeline" as a new concept will be studied more in the coming years to see how this infrastructure can be applied to form a larger scale of social fabric to make the world more flat and equalized.
For different kinds of social application, we can now link them easily by importing/exporting their RSS/Atom feeds. In this way, they can be connected like a pipeline system(Do you still remember the classic fun game "Pipeline"?).  Meme with XML format can flow over different pipes to reach different users eventually . There are different kinds of pipeline building blocks in the system including pipes, Tee joints("T"), and elbow joints, etc. Since there are more and more such type of components can be chosen by users, the system becomes more complex than a traditional one-to-many system(like the urban waterworks). The many-to-many relationship between those building blocks can generate non-linear chain effect that maybe possible to amplify little voices into big bang. It‘s the new type of media, "Social Media".

I‘m makingan illustration on "Social Media" big picture  by putting some typical "Micropipeline" applications on one map to show how information could flow from one person to mass population by routing those pipelines and possibly generate impact. Of course, the value of the original meme should be recognized along the path.  Traditional media like "Reuters" is no more than a super node on such a big map. The picture is not finished yet, but I would love to share some draft works to get your comments to improve it.
Someday in near future, I think the connection between different pipeline application won‘t be just limited to RSS. They can eventually "talk" to each other in more flexible and semantic way.  Some new kinds of authentication methodologies like OpenID could be applied in such scenario to ensure that information are authentic enough. And I‘m sure XML-based Microformats will play key roles in future picture.
Micropipeline will be more important to some totalitarian countries like China to confront it‘s censorship system("Great Firewall", or GFW in short). Those seems-redundant building blocks(like Google Reader v.s. Bloglines) just more helpful to build fault tolerant media pipelines to serve people in such countries.  E.g. It‘s found thatSoup.io were blocked two weeks ago by GFW in China:
As feared, we‘ve been blocked in China again.
Soup userkunshou has posted some newsuggestions on how to circumvent the block (in Chinese). Should these fail,Tor remains your best bet.
This is an unsatisfactory state of affairs for our Chinese users – but as much as we‘d like to, we can‘t just keep changing our IP address every day.Sorry! :(   ---[via Censorship evades Soup, has stronger kung-fu]
Bloggersgot very angry(Chinese) on such blockage withcurses all the time. But they are now becoming smarter to build more complex personal pipelines to avoid of single point failure.  They switched toFriendFeed.com as the alternative solution to burn their social feeds as life stream.  And their subscribers can response as well to keep their information pipes flowing at normal level.  The same trick applys toYahoo Pipes! when people foundFeedburner was blocked in China half year ago.  If it‘s amouse and cat game, the mouse seems faster and smarter now.
For the draft illustration shown above. I‘m actually usingZooomr as the picture link here instead ofFlickr since the later onehas been blocked in China as well. However, I believe they can‘t block every picture sharing site around the world to kill themsevlves. So I think it‘s a great hack that we Chinese can survive in such a Social Media age.  We can even change the country in a longer extent for sure.
Labels:Computing,GFW,Sharism,Singularity,Social Media
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