We tell stories

So cool!
This effort by "Penguin" and "Six to Start" strikes me as both cool and full of potential. I'm not sure exactly where the potential will lead, but this is a sandbox I'm going to pay attention to.

What is it? It's a collaboration between Penguin authors and the web-geeks at Six to Start. They find new ways to tell stories using web technologies. Week 1 used a mashup with Google maps as well as some now-par-for-the-course embedded phone numbers (you know, you call the phone number and it enriches the story somehow).

Week 2 used blogs and flickr etc. to tell a story. It relies much more on the user to do some sleuthing, which I'm not normally up for, but is a cool idea nevertheless.

Week 3 I wasn't into as much since it seemed like a combo choose-your-own-adventure/mad-libs story. Maybe it wasn't as interesting, or maybe I just know more about how I'd code something to do that, and so wasn't as impressed.

So what?
First, this is just cool. The best innovations tend to come out of sandboxes and playgrounds and this is a good one. I commend Penguin for doing this, because mucking about with an established brand can be nerve-wracking.

I really enjoyed week 1 for two reasons. First, I appreciate the new channels for meaning. Choices about zoom level, whether to show map or satellite, and what other elements to thumb-tack onto the map all add layers to the story. I think that's great stuff and look forward to other authors investigating it further.

Second, I like the demonstration of what Google maps can do. For instance, I think a lot of people fail to carry through on good intentions because they are nervous about showing up somewhere and looking like they don't know what to do. Using gMaps like this, you could overcome a lot of that. Consider, for instance, if you wanted to arrange a rally at the mall in D.C.. You could walk all participants through the whole thing virtually, pointing out parking spots, rallying locations, bars for afterwards, and even posting pictures of people to look for. I expect that sort of treatment would boost participation by 10% or more.

New tack - coolwhat

I've decided to try a new format. From here on out (or until I demonstrate to myself that this won't work) I'm going to post cool things I find online and dig a little into what I think they mean for the business, culture, and practical use of the Web.

I'm calling this new format "so cool! so what?" and tagging it "coolwhat".