Web 2.0 services are like modern-day sharecropping where users don't own the services or data and are at the mercy of the service providers. The document discusses the risks of lock-in and lack of access to data and services when a provider goes down or cuts off access. It promotes building applications that can operate offline without servers through open protocols and peer-to-peer syncing to avoid dependence on single providers.

1. Web 2.0 is
Sharecropping
Jesse Vincent
jesse@fsck.com

2. (That’s bad)

3. This is a rant.

4. The bad old days:

5. Pic of sharecroppers

6. You farmed land you
didn’t own...

7. ...with tools you
couldn’t really afford.

8. You paid for it with
part of your harvest...

9. A pretty sweet deal...

10. ...until things got bad.

11. (Things always got bad.)

12. In a bad year, you got
further in debt to
the land owner.

14. The (more recent)
bad old days:

15. pic of mainframes

16. Things got a little
better:

17. Pic of PCs

18. Things weren’t all rosy:

19. Pic of BSOD

20. Sometimes new
versions of software
killed features...

21. ...so you were locked in
to old versions.

22. pic of win 31?

23. Things got ‘better’:

24. rms
che

25. Now, things are getting
worse again...

27. What happens when
your favorite service
goes down?

28. pic of twitter being
down

29. ...or stops accepting
new signups?

31. ...or gives all your data
to the secret police?

32. Pic of yahoo.cn

33. You don’t own the
services you use.

34. When the service
provider cuts you off,
that’s it. No recourse.

35. Not so secret shame:
I’m a really bad zealot.

36. My calendar lives at
google.com.

37. I make a web 2.0
tasklist service called
Hiveminder.com

38. pic of hiveminder

39. Using hosted apps is
going to hurt you.

40. Data access is
important.

41. APIs are great.

42. ...but easy access to a
service just makes it
easier to get locked in.

43. What about Google
Gears, Adobe Air, etc?

44. Great. now you can use
your word processer
while you’re offline!

45. Pic of wordperfect

46. Real offline apps
shouldn’t need servers.

47. Real offline apps
should sync like you do.

48. I’ve been hacking on an
open source database
called “Prophet”.

49. It has an API like
Amazon SimpleDB or
Google App Engine’s...

50. It’s designed for
“team-scale” apps.

51. It’s built for P2P
replication and
disconnected use.

52. App #1 is the canonical
“offline bug tracker”.

53. App #2 will probably
be a BBS you can sync
over sneakernet.

54. bestpractical.com/prophet

55. Make sure nobody can
take away your right to
use your software.
Thanks!