During my trip to SXSW in March 2011, I catch up with a couple of ReadWriteWeb writers — one of them quite angry. Then when I get back home, I start thinking about big changes to our company. I was having a crisis of confidence and wanted to transition out of the CEO role, so that I could focus fully on editorial. https://cybercultural.com/p/058-readwriteweb-ceo-dilemma/ #InternetHistory #Web20
internethistory
On my latest trip to New York City, in May 2010, Sean and I attend Creative Week to scope out the venue for ReadWriteWeb's next event, we meet VC Fred Wilson, and visit the New York Times skyscraper. (part 050 of my Web 2.0 memoir) https://cybercultural.com/p/meeting-new-york-times-may2010/ #InternetHistory
I wrote in a previous post that 2012 was the year that Web 2.0 quietly died...but it was also when a new kind of internet was born: a more mobile and visual one, with images and videos leading the way. Take a trip with me back to 2012, when YouTube "creators" started to be more popular than mere bloggers, when Facebook acquired Instagram, when Pinterest was a fast-growing social network, and when "picture subreddits" were all the rage. https://cybercultural.com/p/internet-2012/ #InternetHistory
In this instalment of 'Bubble Blog', my Web 2.0 memoir: It's mid-2011 and our writer woes are not getting better. It’s impacting page view numbers and social media referral traffic is also a concern. It prompts me to decide on a drastic strategy shift for ReadWriteWeb. https://cybercultural.com/p/059-editorial-pivot/ #InternetHistory #Web20
Team ReadWriteWeb attends SXSW 2011 in Austin. We host a BBQ for our sponsors, I meet Sarah and Seamus for the first time, and the RWW management team addresses writer concerns. (part 057 of my Web 2.0 memoir) https://cybercultural.com/p/057-sxsw-2011/ #InternetHistory #Web20 #Serialization
Remember when we all thought HTML5 websites were the future of mobile? It's May 2010 and ReadWriteWeb holds its second Silicon Valley unconference, this time about the mobile internet. One of our presenters shows off their HTML5 website called Burbn, but shortly after pivots to an iOS app called Instagram. The rest, as they say, is history. https://cybercultural.com/p/049-rww-mobile-summit-may2010/ #InternetHistory #MobileInternet #HTML5
I’m thrilled to announce that my book, Bubble Blog: From Outsider to Insider in Silicon Valley's Web 2.0 Revolution, is now available to purchase as a paperback or eBook. More details, along with links to order your copy: https://cybercultural.com/p/book-release-bubbleblog/ #InternetHistory #bookstodon
It's June 2010: I take another long series of flights to New York City for ReadWriteWeb's latest 'real-time web' event. Before that, I chat with Twitter's Dick Costolo and get interviewed by ABC News Radio about filter bubbles and the zombie apocalypse. https://cybercultural.com/p/051-realtimeweb-summit-nyc-2010/ #InternetHistory
In June 2010, I make my first trip to Portland, Oregon, where many of our ReadWriteWeb crew live. On a coworking day at a local cafe, I negotiate a tricky staff problem and also get to know the team better. (Note: this post is dedicated to ex-RWWer Curt Hopkins, who sadly passed away in February this year at age 60) https://cybercultural.com/p/052-ricmac-in-portland-2010/ #InternetHistory #Web20
It's a new year of Cybercultural, your favourite #InternetHistory indie website. This year I'll be focusing more on the dot-com era (1990s) and the terrible 2010s. You can expect 1 post per week going forward — subscribe for free via email or RSS.
Ok, onto this week's post: Multimedia Gulch in 1994, when CD-ROM designers lived fast in a time of slow modems! https://cybercultural.com/p/multimedia-gulch-1994/ #Multimedia #Dotcom
I finish up my big 2010 US trip with my first experience of O’Reilly Media’s Foo Camp — and my introvert batteries are severely tested. Before that, a future astronaut takes me to Singularity University. (part 53 of my Web 2.0 memoir, being serialized on Cybercultural) https://cybercultural.com/p/053-foo-camp-2010-singularity-uni/ #InternetHistory #2010 #Introvert
I see @theverge is running a '2004 week'. If I may be that little bird riding on the elephant's back, I have several 2004 posts on my Internet History site Cybercultural if you're interested in that era:
- What the Internet Was Like in 2004: https://cybercultural.com/p/internet-2004/
- The First Web 2.0 Conference in 2004: https://cybercultural.com/p/003-the-first-web-20-conference-2004/
...and a few more on my '2004' tag page: https://cybercultural.com/tags/2004/
#InternetHistory #2004
Take a trip with me back to social media in 2010, when the likes of Facebook, Twitter, Digg and StumbleUpon were SENDING TRAFFIC to websites (I know, hard to believe, right? People actually used to click on links!) Friends, it was a halcyon time for tech blogs and other indie publications. https://cybercultural.com/p/054-social-media-2010/ #InternetHistory #SocialMediaHistory
David Bowie, Prince and Peter Gabriel all had interactive CD-ROMs out in 1994, and had plans for further multimedia projects. But by the end of the year, the CD-ROM format was effectively over. And let's not forget Cybermania '94, the Oscars of multimedia! https://cybercultural.com/p/cd-roms-1994/ #InternetHistory #Bowie #Prince
As we continue to grow ReadWriteWeb over the second half of 2010, I struggle with our inability to hire US writers full-time because it’s a non-US company. This creates unease amongst our bloggers. https://cybercultural.com/p/055-rww-expansion-2010/ (part 055 of my serialized Web 2.0 memoir) #InternetHistory #Serialization
On the first anniversary of launching my serialized book, I reflect on what I've learned — including the pros and cons of my pivot from Substack newsletter to indie website. https://cybercultural.com/p/online-serialization-thoughts/ #Serialization #InternetHistory #IndieWebsites
In the latest instalment of my Web 2.0 memoir, I reflect on the final quarter of 2010 — including another trip to Silicon Valley. 2010 was, in hindsight, peak ReadWriteWeb. As you'll read in following instalments, 2011 got... tumultuous. But you never quite know what will hit you next in the tech industry, so I was feeling cautiously optimistic at the time. As I note at the end of this post, in December RWW had its best-ever traffic month. https://cybercultural.com/p/056-parc-visit-2010/ #InternetHistory
One of my all-time favorite artists is Lana Del Rey, and in this week's Cybercultural I chronicle her breakthrough year of 2011 — and how YouTube and social media were pivotal to her rise. 2011 was when Lana achieved "internet fame", which eventually led to a far greater level of fame. https://cybercultural.com/p/lana-del-rey-youtube-2011/ #InternetHistory #LanaDelRey