That phrase in its entirety isn’t worth repeating, but the sentiment lives on. Except that you can replace the word “opinions” with “social bookmarking services” and continue on your merry way.
While reading What’s Wrong with Commas, Anyway?, I learned about another one, Simpy.com. Of course, I already know about Spurl, Furl, del.icio.us, del.irio.us, connotea, and dozens more if I actually wanted to find them. (Linking is left as an exercise for the reader.) Only one I’m using is del.icio.us, despite its RSI-inducing URL. Yikes. I hope most of these are just hobby sites… otherwise, one might imagine that it’s 1999 all over again, and we’re watching features pretend to be businesses. Somewhere amidst all the tech hype that’s simmering, but not yet boiling over, is there more substance? Or am I just (foolishly) captive to my dozen years of building online services in thinking that earning some time and attention from a meaningful number of people is a bit harder than copying someone else’s idea?
I’m not against copying. The great ones go one step further, after all. It’s just harder to tell a story if it’s not your own. At least, it is for me… maybe I need to get over that. I’ve been thinking a bit more about what a product or service’s story must be to stand out in a crowd. Blame Seth Godin. I need story-telling help.