6 : 00 A.M.
WARNING: DUMB STUPIDNESS

So there's this thing called "Livejournal" which is basically a big semi-free access content management system which makes simple the task of creating a web page with serialized, archived updates. In addition, there is a BBS-like feature where you can add commentary on updates. The other important function provided is a kind of access-control group system which allows you to control who reads/commentates the documents you create. Now, I created an an account on this system a while back to try out these things and see what's on there. Mostly, the people who use this system post short, vague statements about how they are feeling, or something specific they did on a given day. Some of them exploit the BBS features, having conversations with other users who they are familiar with (more or less). Like any other BBS, there are little groups that have get togethers or sell stuff to each other or just put up naked .jpeg graphics of themselves. So many people use it, that almost any interest is catered to (though not to the degree found on usenet). I used the limited access-group features that I as a non-paying moocher have, to create a group consisting of people I am familiar with, in order to get a summary page of all of their recent updates.

The name that the creators of livejournal gave this feature is "the friends list", which creates all sorts of social weirdness among those who use it. If you take someone out of the group, you're not just updating your digest feature, you're REMOVING THEM FROM YOUR FRIENDS. HA HA GO DIE! Or say there's an icky, arrogant, loudmouthed, booger-eating doofus whose posts you want to keep up on so you can have your daily shot of smug superiority. Want to be notified when he updates? Well you're practically BEST FRIENDS now! (not that I will quickly admit to doing this).

Various factions of livejournalites are arranging "Meet ups" in which all people in a similiar locale which use the system get together and socialize (or antisocialize, if they're that kind). To this end, they are using a public system called "MEETUP", which is a blah blah blah system blah blah for doing that kind of thing. The whole reason this is worth mentioning is that there is a similar (i guess) get together for members of an older community of online journal people called "JournalCon". JournalCon is different because there is only one event per year, and all attendees must travel to the same place on Earth, no matter where they live. Historically (over the 2 times it has happened) they have had panels which discuss things of concern to those who would like to maintain a proper online presence. These panels are being de-emphasized this year, most likely because of low interest and attendance. I might be reading the Official JournalCon 2002 Website wrong, but it looks like only 12 people are going right now, half of them being the organizers of the event. There are still 3 months of registration left, but even the most wildly optimistic interpretations of the poll results on the site put total worldwide attendance at 52.

Keep in mind, this was supposed to be a serious production, with an official hotel, a program, discussion groups, and organized events. If only 6 people travel to be there, it hardly seems worth all the work that the other 6 people had to put in to get them there.

Why even talk about JournalCon at all? Well, to contrast the "meetup" thing. There's one in each city, and the Seattle area one alone has 143 people signed up to potentially attend. This presents a different and funnier set of problems: The hosts are outnumbered 20:1 (with little cooperation evident), many of the attendees are seriously underage (making messes and obnoxious behavior likely), and the three potential venues chosen by the "meetup" system for voting on would be stuffed full to a probably illegal degree. Bauhaus coffee with 100 people in it? Let alone 143. I think the sign by the door says you can have 40 people in there.

And that's before people start getting in fights over being taken off each others friends lists!

If I was going to have panels about how to do this whole journaley guy thing right, I'd have topics:

Would anyone tell me if I was getting... stupider? -- _RV_, Faith No More