this post was submitted on 19 Oct 2024
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[–] sxan@midwest.social 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

My point was that the comment I was replying to implied that the web was created so that people could monetize content. That was not the reason why the web was created.

If I create a whingdoodle that provides people with free electricity, and you find a way to murder cities with it, then you can't claim it's "functioning as intended." I didn't intend for it to do that; you found a way to pervert it. Now, Billy found a way to prevent you from murdering him with your weaponized wingdoodle, and you argue that he shouldn't, because the wingdoodle is "functioning as intended." I'm calling bullshit on that. That was my point.

[–] SpaceCowboy@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

There's http response code 402 (payment required) which comes before even 404 (page not found). Indicates to me that people were thinking about using the web for commerce even before they thought about people putting in a wrong URL.

[–] sxan@midwest.social 1 points 1 month ago

Like I said, the best resource for this is Tim Berners-Lee, the man who literally invented the WWW.

Although, I was in college when he did it, and I have a pretty clear memory of those early years. Before JavaScript; before Java; before https. You know, https, the thing that enables secure data transfer like credit card information? Which was introduced 11 years after http was released and being used?

No. I can't say what all Tim foresaw, but ecommerce and monetization of the web was not at the forefront of his intentions. Just look at what he's written about it himself. Or, email him; he's still alive.

[–] tomalley8342@lemmy.world 0 points 1 month ago (1 children)

When he said "the system", he probably meant the system of ad funded services, not the system of the World Wide Web, the HTML markup language, the URL system, and HTTP as envisioned by Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee (born 8 June 1955),[1].

[–] sxan@midwest.social 1 points 1 month ago

Oh. So advertising is working as it was designed? I won't argue with that, except that I block all that so it doesn't, really. I suppose it still affects people who neither care to block it, or don't know how.

Advertising is a pox on capitalism, which has enough problems without the parasites.