As a software designer over the last ten years, I've become acutely aware of how much like an architect's this trade is. Designing a building, of course, doesn't necessarily require an architect. But one who specializes in architecture and plies his trade over time would most likely run circles around an amateur.

Several years back, several respected software designers initiated the Worldwide Institute of Software Architects. The fledgling organization is growing and provides the kind of peer network that other professions have. Hats off to the practitioners of a new profession ... the software architect!

Favorites: about.com * howstuffworks.com *
Janis Ian * GPS Tracker * New Yorker cartoon * David Coursey/Time * More ...

As an inventor, I've always been interested in the inner workings of things. Although nearly everyone on the web knows of these two sites, I think it's time that they were recognized for both their service to the internet community and their exponential growth. They are, of course, about.com and howstuffworks.com.

About.com is owned by Primedia and grew out of a site called The Mining Company. It is based on real people called "guides" of which there are hundreds, organized into 23 "channels," covering 50,000 plus subjects and utilizing over 1 million links. Its business model seems dependent on a kind of "soft sell" advertising at the bottom of each web page.

HowStuffWorks.com is the "brainchild" (pun intended) of Marshall Brain (his real name) and grew from his interest in non-fiction writing for teens. Its business model seems dependent on selling ancillary products and some advertising. I especially like their extension from things to human activities, like "How Christmas Works."

Taking the two sites together as a kind of an encyclopedic resource, a cornucopia of information is available. And, for me, they exemplify the promise of the web.

Favorites: Janis Ian * GPS Tracker * New Yorker cartoon * David Coursey/Time * More ...

Early on in my long entertainment career I was signed as a recording artist with a major label (A&M Records). I tried hard to understand the mechanism of the recording contract, but to no avail.

My experience was that most employees at record labels were actually artist wannabes who, for many reasons, were settling for a "next best" career. With such folks "at the controls," it's no wonder that historically less than one out of eight major label recording projects yields enough return to cover its own recording costs. It's clear that for a record company to make money, the hit artitists' proceeds must cover the expense of the flops.

Singer-songwriter Janis Ian, who scored major hits with "Society's Child" and "At Seventeen" in the 1970's, continues to be active as a recording artist. During her 25 year career, she has yet to receive dollar one from her major label recordings. Over the last several months, Ian has garnered much worldwide attention for two articles she published on her website in which she lucidly explains the effect of the internet on making and selling recordings and why the major labels' business model is in the midst of seismic change.

It's an updated "Emperor's New Clothes" tale from a woman who proves all over again how bright and savvy she is!

Favorites: GPS Tracker * New Yorker cartoon * David Coursey/Time * More ...