OpenMicroBlogging
OpenMicroBlogging
An open standard for distributed micromessages
The Jaiku Opportunity
January 18th, 2009
It was noted on the Google Code Blog that microblogging site Jaiku will be released as Open Source software. The code will target the Google App Engine platform, so that people who want a microblogging site on GAE can build one almost instantly.
Interestingly, the announcement included this sentence:
The new Jaiku Engine will include support for OAuth, and we #8217;re excited about developers using this proven code as a starting point in creating a freely available and federated, open source microblogging platform.
There #8217;s a great opportunity here for Jaiku and its new Open Source clones to join the existing OpenMicroBlogging network. (I suspect that the reference to OAuth, which forms the basis for OMB, might be referring to that.) But it also seems clear that they #8217;ll be looking to Python hackers in the outside community to do the implementation.
There are dangers, too, here. One is that Jaiku creates a custom protocol, effectively cutting off the site and its clones from the OMB network. This would be problematic; it #8217;s unlikely that two competing protocols will get much traction. Another is that the OMB code for the Jaiku engine is implemented in a patch, a fork, or a difficult-to-install plugin, meaning only a minority of Jaiku installations are OMB-connected. I #8217;d love to see the code either part of their core, or in a plugin that #8217;s installed by default (and preferably on by default!).
I #8217;m eager to see engineers from the Jaiku team at Google, and interested Python hackers, get into the OMB discussion on our mailing list. I, for one, look forward to having a connected network of diverse implementations #8212; proprietary and Open Source #8212; that can communicate through simple, clear open standards. Let #8217;s take the steps to make that work.
Tags: google, google app engine, jaiku, network, open source, opportunity, protocol, python Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments #187;
OMB 0.2 preview
January 9th, 2009
I #8217;ve sent an email to the OMB mailing list with some proposed changes to the OpenMicroBlogging spec. It #8217;s probably too detailed to replicated here in full, but people who are following the spec may want to check it out #8212; and make sure you #8217;re on the list!
Tags: 0.2, changes, mailing list, omb, proposals, upgrade Posted in specification | No Comments #187;
A new site and renewed purpose
January 8th, 2009
This is the first post on the new OpenMicroBlogging Web site. OpenMicroBlogging (OMB) is an open standard that allows users on different micro-blogging services to communicate with each other. I think of it like SMTP for email: people on different mail servers can send mail to each other, using the magic of SMTP and universal email addresses. Federated networking systems are much more robust, and have faster levels of innovation, than monolithic systems.
When I launched Identi.ca