are.na An Application by Charles Broskoski www.are.na Build ideas mindfully. Save content, create collections, and connect ideas with other people. ObsidianRoam ResearchWhat this site isOn Motivation thinkingnetworkshypermedianotetaking
On Motivation An Essay by Charles Broskoski www.are.na I’ve had this (semi-vague) idea that I want to write about what keeps us excited to work on Are.na, on the occasion of its 10th (yes 10th) birthday. While writing generally is a tricky process for me, this subject motivation is even trickier. In turning this subject around in my mind, and thinking about all the people and things that have been influential, I have some idea about what keeps us going. Nodal pointsInfinite varieties of contextsA lifelong projectGrowing in the correct way are.naThe slow blade penetrates the shield
The problem with trees Many systems are organized hierarchically. The CERNDOC documentation system is an example, as is the Unix file system, and the VMS/HELP system. A tree has the practical advantage of giving every node a unique name. However, it does not allow the system to model the real world. For example, in a hierarchical HELP system such as VMS/HELP, one often gets to a lead on a tree such as: HELP COMPILER SOURCE_FORMAT PRAGMAS DEFAULTS only to find a reference to another leaf: Please see HELP COMPILER COMMAND OPTIONS DEFAULTS PRAGMAS and it is necessary to leave the system and re-enter it. What was needed was a link from one node to another, because in this case the information was not naturally organized into a tree. Tim Berners-Lee, Seeing With Fresh Eyes A City Is Not a Tree hierarchywww