The Web will reflect humanity if we put our lives online. Putting our lives online does not mean leading our lives online; it is about utilizing unprecedented sharing. We interact in the real world, and we use cyberspace to collaborate and share and conjure new possibilities. Do we want to see ourselves, joys and sorrows, reflected in cyberspace, or do we want an easier mall? Not that both won’t exist, but when you sit down to craft your page, take into account which you’d rather see.
Predictor: Hall, Justin Allyn
Prediction, in context:In a 1995 online essay “Why the Web?” Justin Hall makes the following statement: ”The Web will reflect humanity if we put our lives online. Putting our lives online does not mean leading our lives online; it is about utilizing unprecedented sharing. We interact in the real world, and we use cyberspace to collaborate and share and conjure new possibilities. Do we want to see ourselves, joys and sorrows, reflected in cyberspace, or do we want an easier mall? Not that both won’t exist, but when you sit down to craft your page, take into account which you’d rather see.”
Biography:Justin Hall worked briefly at Wired in 1994, during a sabbatical from his college days at Swarthmore. He started his own irreverent e-zine, covering diverse topics and providing links all over the Web. He later worked for ZDTV and Games.com and as a freelance journalist. (Advocate/Voice of the People.)
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Communication
Subtopic: General
Name of publication: Links.net
Title, headline, chapter name: Why the Web?
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://www.links.net/dox/tech/whyweb.html
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Anderson, Janna Quitney