Back during my MBA, I learned about network effects. Simply put, a service (for us, a blog) becomes more valuable as more and more people use it, mainly because every user functions as a switchboard connecting many (until then) unknown people together.
Think of it like this.
I have a Telephone. Noone else does. Who can I call? Noone.
You have a Telephone, so do I. You can call me, I can call you. That’s one call (Talk combinations possible- 1 – You and I).
John (J) gets a phone. You(Y) and John don’t know each other. Now you can call John, I can call John, and he can call both of us. Or three of us can be on the phone together. (Talk combinations possible – 4 – IY, IJ, YJ, IJY)
Priyanka gets a phone. Now John can Call Priyanka, me and you. Same for Priyanka. Also for me and you. One of us could choose to call two others on conference but not the third. (Talk combinations possible – 11 – IY, IJ, IP, YJ, YP, JP, IYP, IYJ, IJP, JPY, IYJP)
So now with 4 phones in the network, the number of conversations possible has increased in a proportion exponentially greater than the number of people added to the network.
This diagram exposes 1-1 connections :
In fact, network effects are the magic ingredients that make sites like FlickR, MySpace, Orkut, Friendster so appealing. Every time a person joins Facebook, the number of connections he can make and every other person who has a Facebook Account can make goes up exponentially.
Same is true of the local mall. Every time a vacant spot in the mall is taken by a new retailer, the value of the mall goes up exponentially, the value of being in that mall for the other shopkeepers goes up exponentially.
Or of the local stock exchange.
Or of your rail or bus network.
In fact, it is also true of most social spaces that thrive on collaboration.
So, when I read Scott’s post on Top Edublogs, I started thinking of the Long Tail– the hundreds of thousands of brilliant bloggers with exciting ideas on education that have got themselves the tools to belong to a network, but still haven’t logged on. They have a blog but know of no tools to connect to the EduBlog network or have had less time/patience/energy to do so. We are missing out on voices what are yearning to think thoughts and inject ideas you and I would love to think and collaborate on.
Every one of these voices would exponentially improve the conversation in the blogosphere.
So starting today I am going to, every two weeks, introduce a less read EduBlogger to you through this blog. My three criteria for identifying a less read and definitely-readable EduBlogger?
a) A Technorati Authority of 10 25 or less- this would, according to Scott’s analysis, be all blogs outside the top 500 320.
b) The blog should have have had one post in the last 10 days and at least 5 in the last two months (this would give me a large enough sample of posts to decide on whether the writing appeals to me as also to exclude bloggers who write sporadically).
c) Focus on personal, opinion-driven writing, rather than on posts linking to other writing without comments by the writer himself.
Look out for the first of the New Blogger Introductions today.
Update: Click right here to see our first featured Ebublogger in this series.
Also: Click here to see our latest EduPosts.
I’ve been doing something of the same sort. You can read about it here:
http://ericturner.wordpress.com/wednesdays-website-criteria/
Although, I look for blogs with a technorati authority below 150. In my experience, finding blogs below 10 can be very difficult, especially seeking those edublogs that post regularly and endure long enough to be helpful.
Dear Eric,
Thanks for the comment. Repairman mentioned you, your site & new wiki to me in an e-mail exchange and I’ve been meaning to look you up. I’m glad you commented on the site and brought me here.
The idea of the Wednesday Website is a fantastic one! Kudos on it. Seems like we have the same reasons but a slightly (thought not too) different criteria.
My idea was also, in part, to encourage the new blogger. I started a blog a year ago and dropped it in the first month, disheartened by the (lack of) response. I was naive, didn’t know about Technorati, or Google Juice.
I’ve been thinking of a badge of honour too, much like the quirky and fun greenboard you have.
I’ve sent you an e-mail with a suggestion on a possible collaboration – I await your me your feedback on my idea.
Warm regards,
Vivek
[…] first, A Bigger and Better Teaching and Learning Circle mentioned how expanding the EduBlogosphere and hearing voices on the fringes would improve the […]
Very interesting post. Although from your visual aids, it would appear that five people with telephones are going to use them to set up a pentagram and try to summon a demon…
Mister Teacher. You had me rolling with that one! Maybe I SHOULD get together some skype-savants and try this!