Mike Coyle’s Weblog

Comedy Central’s annual celebrity roast was on this last Sunday night. This year’s celebrity roastee was William Shatner.

Why is William Shatner famous? Let’s just say that if you and your buddy with the pointed ears ever decide to book a discounted trip back via to 1983 to watch an action-packed police drama where the show’s protagonist sings a really creepy rendition of Elton John’s “Rocket Man”, then Shatner’s your man.

If you missed it, well let’s just say that all you Star Trek fans should set your phasers to “Incessant Reruns”. Truth be told, they might as well rename the network “Roast Central” for the 11 months following the initial broadcast of the roast each year.

This same weekend I stumbled upon the Web 2.0 Logo Creator, which I used for the Shatner logo above. It dawned on me that both William Shatner and Web 2.0 share the following characteristics:

1. Both are immediately identifiable, almost iconic in nature

   As any Star Trek conventioneer can tell you (sometimes even in Klingon, nevertheless), Shatner is larger-than-life to the Trekkies out there. I was never a big fan of the show, but to its fanbase Star Trek provided an entertainment experience that was far more enriching than that offered by its late-sixties television contemporaries.

   Likewise, Web 2.0 applications are very distinctive in their feature set, branding, and approach. To many, Web 2.0 also provides an experience that is far richer than that offered by (cough) Web 1.0 applications.

2. Both served a necessary role in the evolution of their respective ecosystems

   Shatner’s role in Star Trek helped bring Science Fiction to mainstream TV and cinema audiences.

   Nowadays, many Web 2.0 applications are causing the IT world to rethink the very nature of thin-client applications and the possibilities thereof, as Web 2.0 has mainstreamed a variety of technical and design considerations.

   At the risk of making Newton roll over in his grave, the “killer app” of tomorrow will see further by standing on the sans serif shoulders of beta-quality giants.

3. Both have managed to become caricatures of themselves, while they still “keep on keeping on”

   Sunday’s roast made it crystal clear that Bill Shatner has his self-deprecation switch stuck on the “ON” position. Yet his acting career continues to flourish in shows such as Boston Legal.

   Similarly, there have been a number of sites that make fun of Web 2.0 conventions, yet nearly all of the interesting web apps as of late embody many of the principles, technologies, and design considerations that are often subject to parody.

So, Messrs. Shatner and Web-two-point-oh, keep in mind that in the IT world, like the Friars, we only roast the ones we love.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 23rd, 2006 at 3:41 am and is filed under humor, web20. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.