Towards a discursive informatics from Neal Thomas on Vimeo.
So back in late 2008 or early 2009, there was a competition circulating for students to envision the future of social computing. Given that I was knee-deep in a bunch of theory at the time, trying to make sense of philosophical accounts of meaning and the social, the idea of producing something speculative on this theme was appealing.
What came out the other end was a fairly faulty mix of information studies, philosophy, and half-baked ideas. Rest assured that I did not win. If I knew now what I knew then… It would probably be only slightly more coherent. Let’s call it a stage in my thinking, pieces of which still remain embedded in my overall understanding of where social computing needs to go next. Will also have to get past my penchant for the visually somber (as evidenced even today with this website!)