The Aggregator

What Is An Aggregator?
In my 4 April post I touched briefly on the aggregator. Essentially, an aggregator provides a consolidated view of content in a single browser display or desktop application, and in its simplest form draws that content from RSS (see my 4 April post -- Harnessing Collective Intelligence -- for more on RSS).

What does that mean in English? Well, if in your daily web routine you visit a number of different web sites for news, sports, entertainment, politics, blogs, etc. for your information fix, an aggregator can simplify this process for you. The aggregator allows you to "subscribe" to the content you want to receive and than consolidates that content in a user-friendly format. The below video is an okay tutorial on RSS and aggregators...

Different Types of Aggregators: Web Based or Client Software?

There are many different aggregators to choose from. For a running list of available aggregators visit Wikipedia.

In my brief experience with aggregators I have found that most have similar features. They allow you to organize your subscribed content -- much like you would your email inbox, provide a headline and the first few sentences of each individual item, link you to the original content if you want to read the entire item, and allow you to "tag" the content for future reference.

The biggest decision you will make associated with an aggregator is web or client. A web based aggregator is just that; it's accessible through a browser. If you have Internet access and a browser, and use a web based aggregator, you can access your aggregator from any PC. I am a web based aggregator user. I use Google Reader, but there are many others (see the Wikipedia link above). Below is a shot of Google Reader.


In contrast, a client based aggregator is software installed on your PC. In order to view your aggregator you must access it through your PC. A good client based aggregator I have used is FeedReader. Below is a shot of FeedReader.


Both versions of aggregators have their pluses and minuses. However, for me, being able to access my aggregator from anywhere is a big plus. Some will tell you that client based aggregators are faster than web based -- and thus more efficient -- but I have just not found this to be true. I started with Google Reader, tried FeedReader, and went back to Google Reader because I actually found FeedReader to be slower. Maybe it's my clunky HP laptop...

Additionally, another feature to look for is offline access. Most client based aggregators have this feature and I know that Google Reader has offline access, this may not be the case with all web based aggregators, though.

At the end of the day, even for the casual web surfer, the aggregator is a must for efficiently accessing, receiving and organizing content from myriad web sites. For me it's a keystone for effectively managing my web experience.

Defining Web 2.0 (Videos): Three Different Definitions

I was dong a little research on YouTube and found a few videos I thought I would share.

1. This video is a short clip (50 seconds) of Tim O'Reilly "defining" Web 2.0. O'Reilly, as with everything else I have read by him, approaches a Web 2.0 definition from a business process perspective.

2. This clip (5:17) takes the information from the Wikipedia entry for Web 2.0 and presents it in video format. Nothing earth shattering, but for those of you who prefer the movie over the book, this is for you.

3. The final clip (3:00), which I found to be the most enlightening, is from Andi Gutmans, co-founder of Zend. Gutmans approaches a definition of Web 2.0 from more of a technical standpoint. His main Web 2.0 attributes are:
1. Rich Internet Applications (RIA)
-Flash
-Ajax
2. Service Oriented Architecture (SOA)
-Feeds
-RSS
-Web Services
-Mash-Ups
3. Social Web
-Tagging
-Wiki
-Blogging
-Podcasting

Harnessing Collective Intelligence

The second of Tim O'Reilly's seven Web 2.0 principles is Harnessing Collective Intelligence [1]. Harnessing collective intelligence means that individuals surfing the the web have the ability to add and/or modify the content of a web page -- thus adding collective intelligence. I have found three key examples that explain this principle nicely.

The prime example associated with this principle is Wikipedia. If you don't already know, Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia that allows any web user to create or edit entries -- as opposed to, say, Encyclopedia Britannica, which uses a relatively small number of experts to derive their information from. Wikipedia offers a wide-open social forum that encourages participation, but also has an established methodology for ensuring the veracity of the information contained within the site. Some argue that allowing the free-form creation and editing of information is dangerous business, and that the information offered by the Wikipedia nation is not reliable. However, according to a 2005 study conducted by the journal Nature, Wikipedia is every bit as accurate as Encyclopedia Britannica [2].

The Wikipedia model for a user-created encyclopedia, to many, is a monumental leap of faith. O'Reilly refers to it as a "radical experiment in trust" [1]. However, the Wikipedia idea has been successful enough that it has become the model for a new U.S. intelligence community collaboration initiative called Intellipedia. And the term wiki has become synonymous with collaborative web sites. For more information on Intellepedia see Clive Thompson's New York Times article titled, "Open-Source Spying" [3].

Another key example of Harnessing Collective Intelligence is the rise of the blog. Personal web pages have been around since Al Gore created the Internet. However, the current format of "personal pages" -- the blog -- allows the common web surfer (like yours truly), with no knowledge of HTML, to create highly interactive, chronological running dialogues with rich content. Like a wiki, a blog offers web surfers a myriad means to create, edit, and control information. This blog is a good example because, with very little training, a casual computer user like me can create an interactive site that hosts hyperlinks, pictures, streaming video, and the ability for site visitors to comment on the blog content.

A technology called Really Simple Syndication/Rich Site Summary (RSS) is another important tool for harnessing collective intelligence. If you spend any time surfing the web, chances are you have seen the icon located to the left. O'Reilly goes so far as to categorize that "RSS is the most significant advance in the fundamental architecture of the web since early hackers realized that CGI could be used to create data-based backed websites" [1]. In its simplest form RSS allows a web surfer to subscribe to a page, and receive notification every time the content on that page changes. The link between RSS, the wiki, and the blog is the fact that RSS has created an ease of interaction between all of the Web 2.0 collaboration tools. RSS "pushes" information to a single location (the aggregator), which in turn increases the interaction on wikis and blogs.

In order to view RSS feeds you need to have what's called an aggregator. An aggregator provides a consolidated view of content in a single browser display or desktop application. There are a number of web and client-based aggregators available as freeware. I will discuss aggregators in a future blog, but for those not familiar with them, Google Reader is a great web-based aggregator, while FeedReader offers a solid client-based aggregator. More to follow on this subject...

Finally, Michael Wesch, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State University, released the below video titled "Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us" on YouTube on January 31, 2007. The video sums up nicely some of the things I have discussed in this blog entry.



Allowing users to create and edit data is a profound advancement in the evolution of the internet. Wikis, blogs, and RSS are but a few key examples of how the web community collaborates and endeavors to harness a collective intelligence.

References:
1. Tim O'Reilly (2005-09-30). What is Web 2.0: Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software
2. Jim Giles (2005-12-15). Nature Special Report: Internet encyclopaedias go head to head
3. Clive Owen (2006-12-3). Open Source Spying