Stefik is now manager of PARC's Human Documents Interactions area. He looks back at the dreams of grandiose change and the nightmares of upheaval that accompanied innovations of the past, ranging from the Erie Canal to videotext. He also looks forward into what kinds of technologies are shaping the Web. CIO spoke with Stefik recently about what CIOs can expect on the Internet Edge. An edge marks a boundary between what we are and what we are becoming.
Edges can be big or small.
For example, people can have edges about speaking out or asking for help. We may feel that we need to speak out, but we are afraid of how it will change our lives. We may need help in doing something, but we are too embarrassed to ask for it. We are at an edge when we are oscillating and trying to decide what to do. The Internet Edge is a collective edge, reflecting how people are adjusting as the world becomes more connected through the Internet.