By Matthew Stanton, Metromemetics LLC (first posted 11/14/2004) A three-tiered way to look at commercial mass media websites. Audience Tier One: USERS The people in this tier generally act like consumers: they want to most value and satisfaction they can get for the least amount of cost. They want to find information, save money, save… Read More »
By Matthew Stanton, Metromemetics LLC (first posted 09/10/2003) In the early 1990s, conventional wisdom said the World Wide Web spelled doom for print publications, especially newspapers. People said newspapers would be extinct in 20 years. That prediction is correct. While sites like Monster.com and Ebay have taken away large amounts of once secure classified ad… Read More »
By Matthew Stanton, Metromemetics (first posted 01/14/2001; revised 01/20/2003) Although no one person will fit the following description exactly, the following character guidelines are helpful for creating a realistic “Everyman” which might be found in somewhere in America around the turn of the millennium. Marketing professionals spend thousands of hours and billions of dollars a… Read More »
From the video description: Promotional digital product video shown at 2002-2003 trade conventions about Journal Interactive, the in-house Web development studio owned by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newspaper and Journal Communications Inc.
A Four-Part Checklist for Creating Successful Web Designs By Matthew Stanton, Metromemetics LLC (first posted 10/12/2002; revised 09/28/2003) Designers tend to label their target audiences by each mediums’ method of delivery. Newspapers and magazines have readers, radio has listeners, television has viewers – all passive activities. The World Wide Web differs in that its audience… Read More »
By Matthew Stanton, Metromemetics (first posted 10/12/2001; revised 01/05/2002) Many “old media” professionals are having a hard time transitioning to the “new media” market. In some cases, the new media threatens the old media. Consider newspapers: Classified adverting sales have been trashed by users flocking to Monster.com for job listings and eBay.com for the universe’s… Read More »
By Matthew Stanton, Metromemetics (first posted 10/12/2001; revised 10/12/2002) Consider a typical American’s “local” media options today: One or two local newspapers. A couple dozen radio stations. Several dozen cable channels. Dozens to hundreds of magazines on a newsrack. Thousands of books in a bookstore, or videos in a video store. All of these media… Read More »
2000 Despite projections of doom, the Y2K bug based on year date limitations in old software actually causes few problems worldwide. In January, America Online and Time Warner announce plans to merge. In March, the dot-com crash begins; the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index falls 37% from March to May. In April, Ananova.com launches a lightweight… Read More »
1990 Tim Berners-Lee creates a hypertext GUI (graphic user interface) browser and editor under a program he calls “WorldWideWeb.” (Rejected names for this project include Information Mesh, Mine of Information, and Information Mine.) A demonstrable WWW program is working by Christmas. Mitch Kapor founds the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a free expression action group. Mike Godwin… Read More »
1980 Tim Berners-Lee writes a notebook program, “Enquire-Within-Upon-Everything,” which allows links to be made between arbitrary nodes. Each node has a title, a type, and a list of bidirectional typed links. Sony Walkman introduced, changing music into a more exclusive/singular experience. IBM licenses DOS from Microsoft. Namco’s Pac-Man hits coin-operated arcades worldwide. Ted Turner’s Cable… Read More »