The answer a web search engine delivers is what it believes is the correct answer for the majority of users – often referred to as "the tyranny of the majority". For example, when you search for 'apple', the first result on most search engines is Apple Computer. But you may have been searching for information about the fruit or Apple Records.

Wow, that sounds like something that I might have said several years ago. In fact, I'm almost certain that I made the exact same statement in my talk at Phreaknic 6, but I used unix people and "cat" as the example rather then talking about apples. Shame I didn't say it online somewhere but I don't think I ever did.

Yahoo made MemeStreams. Sort of. Really, Yahoo made a better del.icio.us with some MemeStreams like features. I'm sure the del.icio.us people are fucking estatic about that given that they just took on some funding. There have been many attempts in the past from various parties to make something which was a lot like what I was trying to make. This is the first one that has significant potential in my opinion.

I wonder if someone from Yahoo has seen MemeStreams. Tim Oreilly recently said that "Hackers are teaching the industry what to do." Of course, he turned down a talk on MemeStreams at the first Emerging Technologies Conference. I'm pretty sure the above "apple" comment was in my proposal.

We don't have the resources that Yahoo has, but we've been at this a hell of a lot longer and I'll bet we get it a hell of a lot better. So, if you've got a million dollars burning a hole in your pocket and chip on your shoulder about Yahoo, I'll bet I can turn it into 10 million while beating the pants off of them in the process. Until such time as someone like that arrives this project will remain a weekend hobby with slow code and design updates.

10 years from now when the entire internet looks like MemeStreams I will still probably be totally unknown and slaving away in a cubicle somewhere, but at least I'll be able to look back and say I told you so.

Almost two years ago, one of our engineers was interested in buying a plasma TV and tried using web search to find a good site for reviews --- a quick search revealed that there were hundreds of sites offering to educate him on plasma TVs, yet short of visiting all the sites, it was difficult to figure out which site exactly was the 'best' site. So he did what millions of people do every day – asked a friend, who recommended two excellent sites for plasma TV reviews. He never ended up buying a TV (things just got too busy with search), but this was the moment of inspiration that lead us to build the product we are introducing today – a social search engine that enables people to search the expertise of their friends and community.

And if Industrial Memetics were better positioned, it would get swept up in the next generation of search technology (social search). It provides the thing (reputation matching) that Generation 1 of Social Search won't have. I don't trust my immediate friend circle for anything other than specific bits as much as a robust reputation network.

The answer a web search engine delivers is what it believes is the correct answer for the majority of users – often referred to as "the tyranny of the majority". For example, when you search for 'apple', the first result on most search engines is Apple Computer. But you may have been searching for information about the fruit or Apple Records.

Decius Wrote:
We don't have the resources that Yahoo has, but we've been at this a hell of a lot longer and I'll bet we get it a hell of a lot better. So, if you've got a million dollars burning a hole in your pocket and chip on your shoulder about Yahoo, I'll bet I can turn it into 10 million while beating the pants off of them in the process. Until such time as someone like that arrives this project will remain a weekend hobby with slow code and design updates.

Industrial Memetics, leading the way since 2001.