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That's kind of the point. Those are relatively rudimentary things that don't make them an Apple expert. Yet tech communities like HN sponge up every one of thei

That's kind of the point. Those are relatively rudimentary things that don't make them an Apple expert. Yet tech communities like HN sponge up every one of their posts. They were just great at self-promotion. Though, this isn't a fair time to be lumping them in with Scoble. In fact, I think this top thread of "lol why is Scoble popular anyways?" is pretty lame and counter-productive. It's like "lol he has a stupid haircut anyways": a cheap feel-good bullying opportunity that's only socially acceptable right now because he's on the hook.

jacobolus 9y ago
Some people have a career in building new things or inventing things. Other people have a career in connecting people together, or writing criticism of things other people have built, or writing documentation or other kinds of exposition, or interviewing, or doing investigative reporting, or editing, or building communities, or ... John Gruber does not sell himself as a programmer or computer scientist or technical wunderkind. He was able to cobble together a little ad-hoc specification and perl script (markdown) that works for him, and many other people like it (because it’s great at what it does!), but I have never heard him introduce himself as “hi, I’m the brilliant inventor of markdown, that technical masterwork”, or whatever. He has made his career in writing, which in his case is some mix of criticism, journalism, and surfacing interesting stuff from around the web. He’s quite good at his job, which is why many people read his blog.
vermontdevil 9y ago
I have no problem with evangelism of tech products like Scoble or Guy Kawasaki or Paul Thurrott. Hate when people diss ones educational or working background to make a point. Scoble did a horrific thing at the Foo Camp and who knows at other times and that should be the focus.

jacobolus 9y ago

Some people have a career in building new things or inventing things. Other people have a career in connecting people together, or writing criticism of things other people have built, or writing documentation or other kinds of exposition, or interviewing, or doing investigative reporting, or editing, or building communities, or ... John Gruber does not sell himself as a programmer or computer scientist or technical wunderkind. He was able to cobble together a little ad-hoc specification and perl script (markdown) that works for him, and many other people like it (because it’s great at what it does!), but I have never heard him introduce himself as “hi, I’m the brilliant inventor of markdown, that technical masterwork”, or whatever. He has made his career in writing, which in his case is some mix of criticism, journalism, and surfacing interesting stuff from around the web. He’s quite good at his job, which is why many people read his blog.

vermontdevil 9y ago

I have no problem with evangelism of tech products like Scoble or Guy Kawasaki or Paul Thurrott. Hate when people diss ones educational or working background to make a point. Scoble did a horrific thing at the Foo Camp and who knows at other times and that should be the focus.