5 ms·

Ward Cunningham working on new wiki software (progress videos)

110 points by bcjordan 15y ago

caseorganic 15y ago
If you live in Portland and are interested in working with him on it, there are short work sessions. http://pin13.net/2pj http://pin13.net/2pj
- caseorganic 15y ago
  The newest work session is here: http://caseorganic.com/2rQ http://caseorganic.com/2rQ
bcjordan 15y ago
I should note that Ward Cunningham developed the first wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ward_Cunningham http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ward_Cunningham I really enjoyed listening to his appearance on This Developer's Life: http://thisdeveloperslife.com/post/1-0-6-abstraction http://thisdeveloperslife.com/post/1-0-6-abstraction
- draegtun 15y ago
  Ward Cunningham can also be found on here! http://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=WardCunningham http://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=WardCunningham However thus far it was just to leave one comment: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2911327 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2911327
bcjordan 15y ago
The last video really illustrates the software's possibilities: http://vimeo.com/29540826 http://vimeo.com/29540826
acangiano 15y ago
The code is here: https://github.com/WardCunningham/Smallest-Federated-Wiki https://github.com/WardCunningham/Smallest-Federated-Wiki
DanielRibeiro 15y ago
Original discussion: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2892085 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2892085
misuba 15y ago
What's it for?
- nevster 15y ago
  I want to ask the same question. I have the feeling there's something very interesting here but my mind is failing to see what it is. I feel like someone from the 60's watching the mother of all demos and not quite understanding what's going on. What are the use cases?
jcromartie 15y ago
I'm having trouble putting into words the kind of inspiration that Ward Cunningham gives me. His original Wiki (http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?WikiWikiWeb http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?WikiWikiWeb) might seem really outdated and a bit obtuse at first, but then you realize how good it really is, and can get lost in it for hours. The fact that he's an old-school hacker and is still building innovative things is really cool. I kind of want to call him a living fossil, but I think that might have some connotations. He contributes new ideas in a timeless way.
- pjscott 15y ago
  The phrase that comes to mind is "A dinosaur, but in a good way."
  - chefsurfing 15y ago
    I bet you two would like Alan Kay and Christopher Alexander. Google'm.
- techiferous 15y ago
  > outdated and a bit obtuse Right, when looking back. :) As a participant in the original wiki, I remember it felt very innovative at the time. Back then, the Internet was a one-way street: something you read.
asolove 15y ago
This is fantastic. It would be nice to combine this with some of Bret Victor's work on mathematical interfaces, see his essays Scrubbing Calculator [1] and Magic Ink [2]. [1] http://worrydream.com/ScrubbingCalculator/ http://worrydream.com/ScrubbingCalculator/ [2] http://worrydream.com/MagicInk/ http://worrydream.com/MagicInk/
- beefman 15y ago
  From the 3rd video, it looks like the scrubbing calculator could be implemented as a "plugin".
  - asolove 15y ago
    Yeah, I agree. It would be great to be able to go through a federated wiki, combine data from multiple stories into a single calculated story, and then see how they relate.
muyuu 15y ago
I want to have endless passion like this man...
Someone 15y ago
Some loose remarks: Interesting to see Ward 'discover' a new wiki variant (listen how often he states that the software he is writing 'wants to be X') I am not really familiar with it, but I think this could be called 'pragmatic Xanadu' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Xanadu http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Xanadu). It will be interesting of this will be successful, or whether it will eventually run into the deep problems that project Xanadu thought it had to solve to be successful.
- chefsurfing 15y ago
  It seems that Ward is looking for a pattern in the code and context of the web, the same way that Michelangelo was searched for the sculpture in the stone. "Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it”. [1] It also seems to me that he is keeping the Law of Demeter [2] in mind as well. It's a beautiful way to be! Bravo Mr. Cunningham! [1] http://www.michelangelo-gallery.com/quotes.aspx http://www.michelangelo-gallery.com/quotes.aspx [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Demeter http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Demeter
andrewflnr 15y ago
Does this remind anyone else of Wave? Except that here federation apparently actually works. I love this kind of thing; I hope it does better than Wave did.
gregwebs 15y ago
This software seem still immature now. seems very similar to tiddlywiki.com which is very mature. Federation is a special feature of tiddlywiki though, whereas Ward's work is exciting because it is designed for it from the ground up.
bdr 15y ago
Very exciting. It's like a DVCS for Wiki-style content.

110 points by bcjordan 15y ago

If you live in Portland and are interested in working with him on it, there are short work sessions. http://pin13.net/2pj http://pin13.net/2pj

caseorganic 15y ago
The newest work session is here: http://caseorganic.com/2rQ http://caseorganic.com/2rQ

bcjordan 15y ago

I should note that Ward Cunningham developed the first wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ward_Cunningham http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ward_Cunningham I really enjoyed listening to his appearance on This Developer's Life: http://thisdeveloperslife.com/post/1-0-6-abstraction http://thisdeveloperslife.com/post/1-0-6-abstraction

draegtun 15y ago
Ward Cunningham can also be found on here! http://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=WardCunningham http://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=WardCunningham However thus far it was just to leave one comment: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2911327 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2911327

bcjordan 15y ago

The last video really illustrates the software's possibilities: http://vimeo.com/29540826 http://vimeo.com/29540826

acangiano 15y ago

The code is here: https://github.com/WardCunningham/Smallest-Federated-Wiki https://github.com/WardCunningham/Smallest-Federated-Wiki

DanielRibeiro 15y ago

Original discussion: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2892085 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2892085

misuba 15y ago

What's it for?

nevster 15y ago
I want to ask the same question. I have the feeling there's something very interesting here but my mind is failing to see what it is. I feel like someone from the 60's watching the mother of all demos and not quite understanding what's going on. What are the use cases?

jcromartie 15y ago

I'm having trouble putting into words the kind of inspiration that Ward Cunningham gives me. His original Wiki (http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?WikiWikiWeb http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?WikiWikiWeb) might seem really outdated and a bit obtuse at first, but then you realize how good it really is, and can get lost in it for hours. The fact that he's an old-school hacker and is still building innovative things is really cool. I kind of want to call him a living fossil, but I think that might have some connotations. He contributes new ideas in a timeless way.

pjscott 15y ago
The phrase that comes to mind is "A dinosaur, but in a good way."
- chefsurfing 15y ago
  I bet you two would like Alan Kay and Christopher Alexander. Google'm.
techiferous 15y ago
> outdated and a bit obtuse Right, when looking back. :) As a participant in the original wiki, I remember it felt very innovative at the time. Back then, the Internet was a one-way street: something you read.

asolove 15y ago

This is fantastic. It would be nice to combine this with some of Bret Victor's work on mathematical interfaces, see his essays Scrubbing Calculator [1] and Magic Ink [2]. [1] http://worrydream.com/ScrubbingCalculator/ http://worrydream.com/ScrubbingCalculator/ [2] http://worrydream.com/MagicInk/ http://worrydream.com/MagicInk/

beefman 15y ago
From the 3rd video, it looks like the scrubbing calculator could be implemented as a "plugin".
- asolove 15y ago
  Yeah, I agree. It would be great to be able to go through a federated wiki, combine data from multiple stories into a single calculated story, and then see how they relate.

muyuu 15y ago

I want to have endless passion like this man...

Someone 15y ago

Some loose remarks: Interesting to see Ward 'discover' a new wiki variant (listen how often he states that the software he is writing 'wants to be X') I am not really familiar with it, but I think this could be called 'pragmatic Xanadu' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Xanadu http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Xanadu). It will be interesting of this will be successful, or whether it will eventually run into the deep problems that project Xanadu thought it had to solve to be successful.

chefsurfing 15y ago
It seems that Ward is looking for a pattern in the code and context of the web, the same way that Michelangelo was searched for the sculpture in the stone. "Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it”. [1] It also seems to me that he is keeping the Law of Demeter [2] in mind as well. It's a beautiful way to be! Bravo Mr. Cunningham! [1] http://www.michelangelo-gallery.com/quotes.aspx http://www.michelangelo-gallery.com/quotes.aspx [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Demeter http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Demeter

andrewflnr 15y ago

Does this remind anyone else of Wave? Except that here federation apparently actually works. I love this kind of thing; I hope it does better than Wave did.

gregwebs 15y ago

This software seem still immature now. seems very similar to tiddlywiki.com which is very mature. Federation is a special feature of tiddlywiki though, whereas Ward's work is exciting because it is designed for it from the ground up.

bdr 15y ago

Very exciting. It's like a DVCS for Wiki-style content.