Language, Communications and Media

Before the alphabet there was story telling. A real person, physically present with you, talking and moving. You could see, hear, smell, even feel their presence.

With the written word the message was separated from the messenger. Our language became more limited in how we interacted with it, but it became portable through time and distance.

Finally came radio and then television. You could again hear, then hear and see the messenger.

Our language became richer, more human without giving up on controlling time and distance. But the cost to use this communications platform was even more expensive - and therefore  limited - than writing.

Now, with the web our language - that of each of us as an individual - can become a  fuller language of media. The barriers of cost are gone.

Our language is now closer to us than in centuries. And our language is now media. Symbols, images, video, audio, text, interaction. We can provide a richer, more complete culture with more people in stronger relationships.

The result is going to be that all the software systems built since the first software was written will be obsolete without allowing us to work with it in our fullest expression of language. It takes a little time, but Internet time is faster than most.