I’ve been thinking a bit about this series, and decided if I was really going to make a point (or just be funny, either is good with me), I needed to “break out” of the overly techie terminology.  Not to say it won’t be back as soon as next week, but I realized if I were to challenge dear mom on, say FTP, she’d have no idea.  But then again, I don’t think there’s as much ooh-la-la about FTP these days as there is, say, bookmarkletting or blogmobbing (don’t worry mom, neither are words).

Also, I asked Mom to describe some of her research ‘paths’ and included them here.  Without further adieu, awaaaay-we-go!

I assume tht Social Networking is exactly what it says….networking in order to be able to socialize, meet someone?, not a dating service though. Perhaps a way for people to be able to socialize on-line since they don’t seem to be able to do this in person. Skills have increased on-line rather than in person. Does that seem a tad judgemental? considering that I haven’t even researched the topic…

The funny thing (well, for me, that is), is Mom isn’t nearly as critical of things as I am!  Ain’t that a hoot?

Whoops!! First two choices on Google refer to ‘wiki’ and we all now know
what that means, don’t we?

Notice how a bit of research into Wiking has soured my Mom on anything-wiki?  I’ll give her the heads-up that Wikipedia is worth checking out, for the most part…

From The Social Software Weblog: Now here’s something I find interesting.
I’m reading a short piece on a patent on social networking granted. I cannot
believe that the internet/computer world, whatever you want to call it, has
become so specialized that I’m having trouble understanding the whole piece.
OK, I just got it. My guess is partially correct, the part that I’m missing
is ‘relationships within social networks’.

Wait!! From Orgnet.com: After reading this, I’m not sure why this social
networking even exists. What is the purpose of it? Is it just fancy
terminology for something that has always existed?

See?  Mom’s got google skills and whatnot! 

From Technorati: OK, I was right originally.

Okay, good job Mom.  Next question was: “can you find a social network that appeals to you?”

No, I wouldn’t use something like this. I have a hard time using ‘instant’
friendships or anything like that. I would rather meet someone, even on the
other side of world, in a more natural way. So I’m not looking for one that
I would use because I wouldn’t use one.

Fair enough.  So I followed up with: “what about Eons.com?” (for those who don’t know, Eons is a social network for, the 50-plus, and I don’t mean you tubbies out there)

Obviously this is a site that I would read and go back to, but I doubt that I would reach out to meet someone because that’s not my style. I might go to some events if they held alot of interest for me.

Well, there you have it.  My poor delusional mother just wants to make “real” friends, not these “virtual” ones.  That is just so nineties of her.  Mom - get with the program - nobody needs to “meet” people anymore.  GOSH!

Looks like last week’s inaugural Skeptic’s Mom post was a resounding success, so it’s time once more to… ask… skeptic’s… Mom!!!!  Today’s episode focuses on Wikis.  The question, as asked, was: “Mom, what would you say a Wiki is, and (if you find out) could you possibly envision yourseld using one? If so, what for?”  For a quick refresher on the rules, Mom has 2 minutes to get some kind of answer, then up to 30 more minutes to google away.

What is a Wiki? My first inclination is to laugh at the name; I haven’t any
idea. Depending on how you pronounce it, it could be something found in
Miniature Golf or a real technological thingie. So I’m going to look it up
because I don’t know.

Okay..I’m looking this thing up and I’ve just been informed that at some
point I’ll be able to watch stuff in the public restroom. Why would I want
to do that?? It’s bad enough that I go to the restroom and there’s people
there talking on their cellphones!!!
…

Go take a poke around, you’ll see answering this one isn’t as easy as you might expect.  And it’s not fair to count Wikipedia, since despite our little worlds, not everyone knows about it. For example, if you google wiki, one of the more compelling links is from wiki.org.  Here’s the first paragraph from that definition:

Wiki is a piece of server software that allows users to freely create and edit Web page content using any Web browser. Wiki supports hyperlinks and has a simple text syntax for creating new pages and crosslinks between internal pages on the fly.

I understand all of that, but it really is too darn jargony.  So Mom apparently went around looking for more practical definitions.  Let’s see the rest of her response.

…
Now I’m reading about the ease of getting information about restaurants,
hotels, etc. I guess if all of this is easy to access I would use it. If it
requires more effort than looking in a travel book I wouldn’t have the
slightest interest. I might be missing something about the joys of Wiki but
I don’t want to spend time looking for stuff that I could more easily find
elsewhere, like in my Lonely Planet book………..and the pictures are
nicer.
…

I guess she’s not compelled there. I decided to poke around a bit and find some examples of companies either using wiki technology for their businesses, or those who are providing wiki technology to others (here’s a SIX-page review of how to select a hosted wiki.  ugh!).  Here are some highlights:

• Jotspot lets you “Create and share documents, spreadsheets, calendars and more with a free wiki for use in work or in life.“  If Mom is an office worker who uses Word and Excel, does anything about the description really sound compelling?  Doubtful.
• ProductWiki has a welcome page in which their tagline is “Open the consumer experience.” Now, I happen to think there is something compelling about really exploding the amount of user-to-user feedback and information about products that can help consumers make better buying decisions.  I don’t think these guys have hit it yet, and I don’t like the tagline, but at least they avoid too much wiki in their vocabulary.
• PlaceWiki needs a complete GUI redesign (I thought Web 2.0 sites were supposed to look pretty?), but does have a decent description: “PlaceWiki - For sharing places and activities.  Anyone can add or edit information about a place or attraction.” Like it or not, you know what it does.
• StikiPad seems extremely stuck on their technology, and their consumer benefits are, well, lacking.  They use ‘write a book‘ as an example, and something tells me they don’t have and never will have a single author take them up on that challenge.

And my favorite…

• PBWiki lets you “Make a free, password-protected wiki as easily as a peanut butter sandwich.“ You don’t get what’s wrong with that?  They take a technology that is only known inside the high tech/Web 2.0 world, and then talk about how easy it is to create.  Oxymoronic, emphasis not on the oxy.

It’s probably a good thing she missed out on the TechCrunch party invite wiki.  For a hysterical write-up on what happened when Mike Arrington attempted to use a wiki to create a party signup, read this on ValleyWag.  This to me was a perfect example of “Web 2.0 Technology Gone Wild” - despite the fact that the blog has a near-perfect system for handling individual signups (hello, commenting… hello?), a wiki was created which caused nothing but frustration.  Tech for tech’s sake alone.

Now let’s hear the rest of what Mom had to say on the topic

…
I can’t get past the phrase ‘Sticky Wicket” related to the game of Cricket, and that’s where I’m stuck. So that’s my answer.  Or…. Wiki…something to do with Wireless….a little doohickie that connects you to… something?

Mom is chatting with Dave Winer to join him at this year’s Wikimania.

So I’m kicking off a new recurring “column” (and I use the term loosely) called “Ask Skeptic’s Mom” in which I will ask my mother a question related to Web 2.0, and we’ll see what she has to say.  The rules we’ve agreed to are as follows:

1. She gets 2 minutes to try to look up a term and come back with a response of some kind.
2. She then gets 30 more minutes (if she wants, she does have a life, so no guarantees on the followup) to further research the topic and answer the question.
3. While I can interrupt paragraphs and whatnot, the answer she provides goes verbatim, no ‘tweaking’ by me.

One other important thing - my mom is no slouch and uses technology in her life.  She has a laptop, a wifi home network (yeah, I installed that), a TiVo, surround sound, uh, and, uhm, well, a microwave (although it just broke, so I guess that doesn’t count).  She also knows about blogs, plays online games, and has never even come close to falling for a Nigerian scam (nope, she’s no Mary Winkler)!

So, today’s question was, “Mom, what is RSS and what is it used for?”

You asked me what RSS is.

Well, my first response is that I just don’t have a clue. In today’s world
it could be a disease…as in “I have RSS and nobody believes that it’s a
real illness; but I just don’t have any energy”. It could be someone’s
initials. I don’t know!!

So I googled it and I still just don’t have a clue. I didn’t understand the
first paragraph, got totally bored because there are words in there that
mean nothing to anyone who hasn’t heard of RSS.

The answer to your question: I just don’t have a clue!

Thanks Mom! 

Anyone is free to suggest future topics for Mom to address by leaving a comment here.