The code parses a starting URL builds a map matching links to URL feeds using several heuristics. The rational is that if you have an RSS feed you are likely a blogger therefore you are included in the map. This does exclude some notable sites and may include some non-bloggers but it gives a pretty good initial picture.
This is the first image map of my local neighborhood to a depth of three links removed. Now that I have all this information at my finger tips the interesting thing is what can I do with it and what other relationships can I start to determine and visualize.
Selling processing as a utility service (one of the Datacommodities) from a grid computing architecture is finally commercialized. IBM's first customer, Petroleum Geo-Services, expects to save $1.5 Billion for a three-month-long seismic imaging project based in the Gulf of Mexico.
"Customers in some sectors want access to large-scale computing power in short bursts," said Dave Turek, vice president of IBM Linux clusters and grid solutions. "We think this supercomputing offering can change how business is done."
Aggregating peaks and valleys into a plain is a great business. Especially when customers will pay a premium for serving bursts while not having to incur capital expenses at the peak. This will be one hell of a spot market one day.
Physical space and blogspace are converging, one could say, and people are trying to figure out why.
Moblogging [Joi Ito] constantly transmits your physical presence to your weblog. Which is damn cool, but I hesitate to transmit my presence to everyone. My Mom subscribes to this blog and yesterday she learned I was heading to MacWorld and emailed me to drop off some coffee on my way. That's fine and kind of cool. But I am not ready to defend myself against Moblog crime -- revealing presence can be a weakness. I need access control on my blog, and not just for Moblogging (Joi notes that most rely on obscurity)
Peter Merholz's post on blogging media by geography (like Gawker), prompted Dan Lyke to open a discussion on hiking and blogging. As Adinaput it, "Dan Lyke suggested a geo-linked hiking blog: "a big collaborative map that'd have information that no single map publisher can put out right now" (also see Blogmapper, which lets you associate blog entries with hot spots on a map, and Blogchalking). Euan has created a private blog to record his hikes. Adina also noted, Other nifty applications would turn this around and create blog entries for a place -- a spot on a hiking trail or a restaurant.
Something similar already exists, originating from the GPS hobbyist world -- Geocaching.
The sport where YOU are the search engine.
A GPS device and a hunger for adventure are all you need for high tech treasure hunting. Here you can find the latest caches in your area, how to hide your own cache, and information on how to get started in this fun and exciting sport...
Geocaching is a relatively new phenomenon. Therefore, the rules are very simple:
1. Take something from the cache
2. Leave something in the cache
3. Write about it in the logbook
Where you place a cache is up to you.
I have actually been on a Geocache hike. You look up a cache page on the site where you read about the hike, coordinates and goodies. Then use your GPS to find it and add something to the cache. Then when you are back you log your experience at the cache's page. It was a great adventure to bring my kid on.
Geocaching is huge: there are over 25,000 caches and 65,000 registered users. Not bad for an adventure game.Geocaching.com makes its money by being a source for gear (Market research firm Allied Business Intelligence projects that the global sales for recreational GPS equipment will rise from just over $2 billion this year to $2.5 billion by 2004 and more than $2.7 billion in 2006 [Merc]) and recently by planning brand corporate events. What works about this model is that it doesn't get in the way of conversations.
There is a large network of active geocachers who are already, in effect, blogging. The opportunity for people experimenting with new geoblogging concepts is creating real activities like geocaching. But even further, to tap in and serve this existing community.
