Soft security, Wiki, blogging, IO

Dan Green, aka DotNetDan, passes along a really thoughtful page from the MeatballWiki on tenets of SoftSecurity . It begins:

• AuditTrail . An audit trail tells you who did what, when. It doesn't necessarily allow you to undo what they did. It does let you know who was responsible.

• ReversibleChange . If anything that can be done, can be undone, no damage need be permanent. Version control is one way of making changes reversible. You can reverse a change without knowing who made it originally.

• DelayAction . When you can't reverse a change, delay that action until PeerReview has a chance to prevent disaster.

• EnforceResponsibility . Knowing who was responsible is not enough. There must be consequences.

• PeerReview . Your peers can ensure that you don't damage the system.

Dan also wonders how Wikis and blogging/IO compare. I'd say the most basic difference is that Wikiites inhabit shared spaces, while bloggers and IOers occupy individual spaces which they then agree to federate in various ways. But it's a continuum, not an either/or distinction. Wikis also federate, and blogs and IOs can become shared spaces. Many modes to explore, many ways to learn and share.

Former URL: http://weblog.infoworld.com/udell/2002/04/02.html#a168