10 The Internet Format (Information Research) part 4
Description
This article is from the Information Research FAQ, by David Novak david@spireproject.com with numerous contributions by others.
10 The Internet Format (Information Research) part 4
Information Clumps
Information Clumps. Information is created, nurtured, develops, gets
transplanted, gets arranged and then becomes visible through a process
which brings similar information together.
As we have discussed, there are factors deeply affecting all
information on the internet. Motivation, Preparation, Format and
Promotion all define the quality and content of any given item of
information. With so many influences, we should not be surprised to
learn information naturally groups together. In reality, there is
nothing natural involved - it is a social phenomenon reinforced each
time you and I visit or read one resource but not another.
History can explain some aspects of internet development. As a small
collection of sites become dominant in particular fields, by collecting
and delivering better content to more people, new sites find it
progressively more difficult to capture attention. This dynamic works
for websites reaching out for visitors, and discussion groups reaching
out for subscribers. In each case, seniority counts.
Seniority counts in several ways too. Promotion is directly related to
quality, interest, traffic and time. The longer a site is active, the
better the footpath develops, the more people visit. Secondly, quality
content is directly related to access to quality content, peer review,
and time/money. Important existing sites gain in every way.
This results in a grand system where the first-in, best-dressed, can
capture the high ground and secure a grand lead in awareness and
footpath over competitors who follow. Yahoo is a prime example of a
directory tree, not even the best in most areas, which has achieved
unparalleled traffic & awareness.
This competition is equally evident where no money is involved. Perhaps
your association wishes to create a new referral website, or an open
mailing list, or an informative guide. All sound concepts, effective
projects. However, if older, established resources exist, the work will
be long and arduous.
Despite the marketing message, the internet is not a world where the
best information floats to the top. The internet will not let you to
reach millions. You must compete for the attention, participation,
devotion and assistance in a manner very similar to building a
business.
In concrete terms, information clumps on the internet. The best
resource could appear on any internet system (webpages, email mailing
lists, ftp-archives, FAQs, online databases, newsgroups...) but we can
be fairly certain the best information will congregate in just one or
two. Consider this as an application of the 80:20 rule. 80% of the good
information will be found on 20% of the formats, arranged concisely by
20% of the search tools.
Consider our article "Searching the Web"
(http://spireproject.com/webpage.htm). We progressively search
different web tools, looking for the most worthy. Searching the
internet is the same. You must touch each system to see which system is
dominant, where the information is congregating for your topic.
Bringing this together
In summary, we have broken down and discussed various qualities of
published information and promoted information. We have made sweeping
generalizations and educated guesses about information on the internet.
Now what?
When a painter begins to paint, they have already visualized some of
the image. They already have a concept of the finished result. Internet
research is no different. We start by building a vision of the
information we seek. Who would publish it? Where would I find it? What
is its motivation? How would we find it? We now have a practical
vision.
The address is one of the keys. The web address (or URL - Uniform
Resource Locator) for any item of information gives us a surprising
amount of information - particularly as we are making generalizations
about information patterns. We can guess if information resides on a
personal webpage, a funded university project, or a commercial project.
The information resides on a .gov website? - the quality is likely to
be higher and conform to our expectations of government resources.
We use this new-found experience in three ways. Firstly, we restrict
our searches to the most likely sources. Secondly, we quickly jump
through lists of resources (such as those generated by search engines)
to the sources that match our expectations. Thirdly, our assessment of
information quality can be guided by our snap-judgements of its origin
and purpose.
Internet newcomers often expect to have instant access to the latest
information at the touch of the button in beautiful colour and peer
reviewed quality prose. Who is publishing this? Where is this
information coming from? Who would help us find this? Such a vision is
fantasy. If we were instead to look for an association website,
dedicated to a certain type of research, or an informed newsgroup,
maintained by people passionate about sharing this technology, then we
have made four steps forward. We are clear about where to look for the
answers we seek, and we will know quickly if the answers are online.
Let us now leave this discussion on internet organization and internet
theory. This is tough newly discovered territory, more than a little
rough. I fear it will make most sense to people with considerable
experience with the internet. Let us now explore the fertile grounds of
understanding more familiar formats like books and news.
Continue to:
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