Archive for the ‘design’ tag
OS Nostalgia and Disappointment
Ten years ago, when I was starting my computer science training, I was a major fan of OpenVMS. OpenVMS, of course, will not run on my laptop, so I needed a solution to run on my standard-issue laptop. Linux was still in its infancy, especially on laptop hardware, so I began to play around with other operating systems. Eventually, a friend of mine turned me on to an operating system called BeOS. Superfast to boot, BeOS was based around a microkernel and a strong graphical user interface (“GUI”) design philosophy.
Today, the original BeOS project is defunct. A group of dedicated enthusiasts are working to bring the project back under the new name of HaikuOS. While Haiku continues to be as fast and lightweight as the old BeOS was, I can’t help but think that the GUI is stuck in the distant past.
After I overcame my nostalgia for BeOS, I started thinking that GUI operating systems have not done much to evolve in the past 25 years.
Creating a New Site
For some time now, I’ve been contemplating starting a new website. Unlike this site, which is my all-purpose soapbox, this new site would be more focused in its scope. That would not only allow me to create a more focused forum, but it would give me the opportunity to practice other skills, such as marketing and promotion.
My first instinct is to write about law and technology issues. After all, this is where I have the most training and experience. I also enjoy researching and writing about both. Of course, I also need to figure out who my audience will or should be. Do I want to appeal to technology geeks, law geeks, the general public, or some mix thereof?
One of the aims for the new site would be a more “professional” style and appearance, whatever that may mean. What sort of standards would I need to follow? Should I try to create something on par with a traditional media outlet, or should aim for a more “blog” like approach, preferring breadth to depth? Should I try to engage in original journalism, such as attending court or regulatory hearings? Do I simply take the Huffington Post route and copy/paste content from other sources?
What about issues of cross posting? Do I share content on both sites, or do I link between the two? How do I address issues of intellectual property? Do I want to try and have multiple contributors? Do I really think this site could become a serious media outlet, or would I be better served creating a site for my own amusement, like my current website.
These are early issues I am trying to work through. If any of my readers has any useful suggestions, I am open to your wisdom.
