February 23, 2004

Flickr in different words

Stewart has a link to eweek on flickr. The difference between what we've seen so far in SS and Flickr is put nicely: Rather than focusing on making connections, as in many social-networking sites, or simply on real-time communication, Flickr embraces the idea of instant media sharing, Ludicorp President Stewart Butterfield said. Its initial focus: real-time photo sharing and collaboration.

Instant media sharing--that's more than text, that's more than pics. Just wait. Music's coming to flickr. I can feel the mp3s just above my left eye socket. And when that transpires mp3s will fly across this truly collaborative community and create a new territory on the map of today's online music scene (or lack thereof). Thank goodness.

Of course, I'm always an optimist.

I'll tell you though, getting image bombed in the middle of a conversation just tickles me to pieces. A way to pass the time for the radically ADD. I can only imagine getting funk bombed or hip-hop bombed.

"The point is to allow people to communicate and collaborate and to experiment in real time," said Butterfield, who dubs Flickr, "Groupware for play."

Tell Stewart I sent you. Trust me, he's waiting for you there.

You'll also find the rapidly flickering flickr flickering thing when you launch the group chat sessions in flickr. More than one flicker-er has dubbed it the seizure-inducing startup thingy.