Wednesday, December 18, 2002

6/2/02: How to create a directory in Radio's Outliner. [Scripting News] 6:51:54 AM    comment []

With all the talk about outlines these days, perhaps I should rev up the evangelism jets for a couple of ideas from the past, one implemented and one not. The one that's implemented is OPML-based directories, like the directories on Yahoo. We have all the software written, and it's ready to be cloned in PHP, server-side Java, Cold Fusion, you name it. It basically takes an outline, in OPML, and turns it into a browsable hierarchy. It's got a zinger in its design, called inclusion, which is like inclusion in C. In C, you put a #include in a program where you want the contents of another file to appear. Unfortunately the HTML Web doesn't have inclusion (big missed opportunity, imho) but the OPML Web does. It allows the author of a directory to delegate branches of the directory to other people, and the suggestions for new links go the author of the sub-directory. For the reader the connection is seamless. For the author it's a matter of right-clicking on an outline node and entering a URL in a dialog. It's even more decentralized than DMOZ is, and like the Web, is open to many home pages, not just a few. The other outline-related idea that I never got around to implementing, but do know how to implement (I think) is what I called "timeless weblogs". Basically you'd route a weblog post to a section of an OPML directory, as described above, using the element that's been in RSS since 0.92. Then it would appear in a news box on that category, so you'd get persistent links on the left hand side, and new bits that are not permanent, in the news box. As with all these things, if you have an idea, the time may not be right. Maybe it's right now for these ideas. Just a Sunday morning pondering. [Scripting News] 6:50:20 AM    comment []

Mr Barrett: "From my airplane window last night, I saw fireworks over a small midwestern town." [Scripting News] 6:49:45 AM    comment []