This blog was first published between March 2009 and July 2010. Between then and October 2010 I closed it up while I focused on working with Dynamic Information Mapping as an alternative to blogging – I’ll explain for your review my version of DIM in the next post.

I, in fact, worked as a representative for Thoughtgraph Ltd, which runs a Cloud-based service called debategraph (at debategraph.org) which is an implementation of DIM, designed to facilitate discussion around complex issues. It has been used in collaboration with the White House on down in this country and in Europe, is very cool and I urge you to check it out. As the Thoughtgraph rep. I worked on trying to get people interested in alternative uses of the software as an early example of DIM software. In that I was unsuccessful. Although I think DIM could be an alternative to blogging – and experimented with that – I came back because I am wary of getting too far ahead of the curve as I did (I would say) in 1991. I remain a Debategraph Associate.

You can find some of the use-case examples I tried by visiting — with a device that works with Flash (e.g. — not an iPhone) – my personal map, which is a good example of DIM in action. It’s not that I have given up on the concept of DIM — in my view it’s a Big Idea — though of course I didn’t think of it — but blogging about it is an easier way at the moment for me to talk about it since flash won’t work on some mobile devices.

I’ve also come back because some of the ideas I wrote about during the first incarnation of this blog (see the ideas from the first year page) now seem to be filing into the general discussion about what happens when the cloud meets the people. I’m glad about this. It shows that the “road less travelled by” may have joined back up to the main road, rather than just wandered off over hill and dale.

The previous incarnation of this blog ended with this postscript on Aug 7 2010:

@paulpck: @lrainie enjoyed cloud computing rep. might find interesting my blog “the cloud and me”? first year summary: [ ... ]

@lrainie: @paulpck Thanks for “the cloud and me” pointer. You’ve covered a lot of ground already. [6/22/10]

Lee Rainie (to save you the click) is the Director of the Pew Internet Project. So that was a big deal for me.

So see ya on the road — the main road I hope this time.