Jim Nelson
19 February 1997

I discovered that Stoll broke the sound-bite barrier with this quote (from his book Silicon Snake Oil): "Every hour that you're behind the keyboard is sixty minutes that you're not doing something else." Which begs the retort -- isn't an hour spent peering through a telescope just as wasted? And think about all the hassle lugging a fifty-pound telescope out into a dark field to get away from the streetlights. Who knows, I might catch a cold or get mugged while I'm out there. Sounds pretty nasty just thinking about it.

CNN is the thinking man's broadcast television -- background noise during dinner time with a weekly crisis story to spice it up.

I appreciate Stoll's cynicism. With all the hype generated from this industry, it's important for someone to keep yelling "not so!" from the back of the auditorium. But there's something odd going on here -- can you trust such reportage considering that Stoll posts daily ponderings on a Microsoft-NBC web site?

Stoll states that "... the information highway is delivering the very thing that people are not demanding, namely lots more, faster data." Methinks CNN's Nielsen ratings prove otherwise. Twenty-four hours a day, any cable box on the planet can pipe news into your head. And people seem to want more, and more, and more.

It's not like CNN is a model of superb journalism, but that's my point. CNN is the thinking man's broadcast television -- background noise during dinner time with a weekly crisis story to spice it up. Larry King is a sit-down Dick Clark, parading the latest 'n greatest personalities out across the bandstand. Crossfire is World Wrestling Federation without all the beer-bellies and face paint. Well, maybe just the face paint.

Stoll's criticisms fall short in light of the fact that, whether you think it's worthwhile or not, people are using the Web to keep themselves occupied. If they're not doing that, they're watching television, or doing drugs, or getting busy on the couch with the next-door neighbor. Stoll's recommendations to sit on the porch or take your dog for a walk just don't cut it with today's brain-dead masses.

People don't necessarily want less information, they want more entertainment -- which seems tautological, and rightly so. Keep in mind that the word "entertainment" is being handled rather loosely. The Web has about as much entertainment value as flipping through McCall's in a dentist waiting room.

And what else is the Web used for? Porno -- entertainment. Chat rooms -- entertainment. Research -- doesn't sound entertaining, but browsing Alta Vista query results feels remarkably like idly flipping through a phone book.

Software distribution -- not entertainment, but c'mon ... delivering apps and drivers over the Internet is neither profound nor revolutionary, it's like driving your car to the gas station. It's so natural, to not take advantage of the resource would be stupid.

All right, so the rule is starting to peter out, but I think I've made my point. The question Stoll should ask is not "is this all a big waste of time?" The question to ask is: "How the hell does Darwin explain one billion Baywatch viewers -- and what if they all learn to use Netscape?"