Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the founder of the World Wide Web. (Image credit: CERN)
Thirty years ago, English scientist Tim Berners-Lee wrote a paper entitled “Information Management: A Proposal,” which detailed how to manage general information about accelerators and experiments at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research). Shortly after that, he implemented the key components to bring his idea to fruition- the first web server, browser, and editor. In April of 1993, CERN released the WWW software to the public for anyone to use and change to his or her liking, as a way for society to benefit from the new technology.
CERN prides itself with their openness- sharing open-source hardware, software, publications, and data, which it had done since 1953 when its Convention was signed. Tim Berners-Lee was on hand to mark the 30th anniversary of his creation at an event held by CERN, and offered his opinion on what the world is doing with his creation, stating in essence, “it’s not the Web we wanted.” We can all agree that the Web is being used for nefarious actions, including state-sponsored hacking, identity theft, hate speech, and so on- far from what was envisioned 30-years ago.
In a letter published by the World Wide Web Foundation, Tim states, “Against the backdrop of news stories about how the web is misused, it’s understandable that many people feel afraid and unsure if the web is really a force for good. But given how much the web has changed in the past 30 years, it would be defeatist and unimaginative to assume that the web as we know it can’t be changed for the better in the next 30. If we give up on building a better web now, then the web will not have failed us. We will have failed the web.” The thinking is that you can’t place blame on a single government, social network, or hacker organization, which Tim explains are symptoms rather than the underlying causes.
In an effort to bring the Web back as a tool for human good, the World Wide Web Foundation is looking to enlist governments, companies, and individuals to take a more significant role in shaping the Web for the benefit of everyone using principles laid-out in a new initiative known as “Contract for the Web.” Under the contract, governments are tasked with making sure everyone can connect to the internet and to respect their privacy while online. Companies should make their services affordable, respect user’s privacy, and develop technology for the public good first over anything else. Citizens are to create, cooperate, and respect civil discourse, among a host of other aspects.
While the Contract for the Web isn’t a complete fix for all the problems associated with the Web, it is an excellent step in that direction. It will be interesting to see what that contract will produce, and what the World Wide Web will look like in the next 30-years.
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