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Martian · 03-10-2011, 08:37 PM

See Charlatan, that's what I'm trying to sort out here.

On the one hand we have the passionate, intensely curious bunch. They love the internet, they love technology, and they want to know every detail of how it works. I'm one of those guys, and I wouldn't be gearing towards those guys because this stuff will be in a real and practical sense beneath them.

At the other end of the spectrum are the folks who don't care. For all they know, the internet is run entirely by tiny little elves -- so long as their email gets where it's going and their access to porn isn't interrupted, they couldn't care less.

Somewhere between these two extremes is my target demographic -- the folks who are kind of curious about how it works, but are lacking either the time or inclination required to learn in the current climate. These folks might appreciate a birds-eye view of the technology that doesn't descend too far into a bunch of technical jargon, but also doesn't skirt around parts of it or "talk down" to the reader. The intent of this thread is determine if this is a large enough market to be worth catering to.

So far as I'm aware, there's no specific resource that goes over the various technologies that contribute to what we know as 'the internet' collected in one spot -- at least, not outside of the classroom. Even if there are books available, a blog has a competitive advantage in that it's free. You might not be invested enough in the subject to drop $30 or more on a reference book, but a few hours of your time is a much lower barrier.

That's not to say that a reference like this doesn't exist. I've never encountered it, and I've heard some complaints from others who haven't and wished there was something like this. The folks I talk to tend to skew a bit, since they have to be using these things by definition if they're talking to me in the first place. Is there an interest in the general public? That's what I'm trying to find out.

03-10-2011, 08:37 PM	#4 (permalink)
Martian Young Crumudgeon Location: Canada	See Charlatan, that's what I'm trying to sort out here. On the one hand we have the passionate, intensely curious bunch. They love the internet, they love technology, and they want to know every detail of how it works. I'm one of those guys, and I wouldn't be gearing towards those guys because this stuff will be in a real and practical sense beneath them. At the other end of the spectrum are the folks who don't care. For all they know, the internet is run entirely by tiny little elves -- so long as their email gets where it's going and their access to porn isn't interrupted, they couldn't care less. Somewhere between these two extremes is my target demographic -- the folks who are kind of curious about how it works, but are lacking either the time or inclination required to learn in the current climate. These folks might appreciate a birds-eye view of the technology that doesn't descend too far into a bunch of technical jargon, but also doesn't skirt around parts of it or "talk down" to the reader. The intent of this thread is determine if this is a large enough market to be worth catering to. So far as I'm aware, there's no specific resource that goes over the various technologies that contribute to what we know as 'the internet' collected in one spot -- at least, not outside of the classroom. Even if there are books available, a blog has a competitive advantage in that it's free. You might not be invested enough in the subject to drop $30 or more on a reference book, but a few hours of your time is a much lower barrier. That's not to say that a reference like this doesn't exist. I've never encountered it, and I've heard some complaints from others who haven't and wished there was something like this. The folks I talk to tend to skew a bit, since they have to be using these things by definition if they're talking to me in the first place. Is there an interest in the general public? That's what I'm trying to find out. __________________ I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said - Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame