stevenberlinjohnson.com: Radar Knows Where The iPhones Are

Here's a cool little example of why I think Radar is such a great product. I came in to town yesterday for 24 hours—we're spending the rest of the summer out on Shelter Island—to do a couple of meetings, including one this morning on 57th Street. My plan was to do the meeting, then pop over to the Apple Store and buy a new iPhone 3G. Before I left for the meeting, I typed the address I was headed towards—9 West 57th Street—into Radar, just to see what was in the "1,000 foot view." (In part because I was thinking I might show a live Radar feed in the meeting.)

And what shows up at the very top of my Radar? A link to this story from Racked, talking about the 3-4 hour lines at the Apple Store on 5th Ave, with a photo of yesterday's insane morning line. One look at that page, and my morning plans were changed.

There are bunch of cool things worth noting about this particular use case:

First, given my objectives for the morning, that Racked story was probably the single most relevant piece of information that I could have seen right before I left for midtown. And Radar had it at the top of the feed. Nice!

Second, this is a classic example of the utility of networked journalism. Sure, Racked is not exactly unearthing political corruption here, or exposing dangerous conditions at the mill. But it's providing information that's genuinely useful, that traditional sources don't provide. The Times isn't going to cover the iPhone line ten days after the launch, and while the Apple site updates store availability nightly, it reports nothing about line length. But this is exactly the kind of thing Racked is brilliant at covering. (Nice, Lockhart!)

Third, note that I didn't even have to type a search term into Radar ("iPhone lines") to get this information. My only filter was my exact location. That doesn't always work quite this perfectly, of course, but it shows you the power of the 1,000-ft view as a way of determining relevance without any other hint from the user.

Now if I could somehow program Radar to actually wait in the line for me...

The Basics

I'm a father of three boys, husband of one wife, and author of seven books, and co-founder of three web sites. We spend most of the year in Marin County, California though I'm on the road a lot giving talks. (You can see the full story here.) Personal correspondence should go to sbeej at earthlink dot net. Media requests should go to Matthew.Venzon at us.penguingroup dot com. If you're interested in having me speak at an event, drop a line to Wesley Neff at the Leigh Bureau (WesN at Leighbureau dot com.)

My Books

Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation
An exploration of environments that lead to breakthrough innovation, in science, technology, business, and the arts. I conceived it as the closing book in a trilogy on innovative thinking, after Ghost Map and Invention. But in a way, it completes an investigation that runs through all the books. Sold more copies in hardcover than anything else I've written.
The Invention of Air
The story of the British radical chemist Joseph Priestley, who ended up having a Zelig-like role in the American Revolution. My version of a founding fathers book, and a reminder that most of the Enlightenment was driven by open source ideals.
The Ghost Map
The latest: the story of a terrifying outbreak of cholera in 1854 London 1854 that ended up changing the world. An idea book wrapped around a page-turner. I like to think of it as a sequel to Emergence if Emergence had been a disease thriller. You can see a trailer for the book here.
Everything Bad Is Good for You: How Today's Popular Culture Is Actually Making Us Smarter
The title says it all. This one sparked a slightly insane international conversation about the state of pop culture -- and particularly games. There were more than a few dissenters, but the response was more positive than I had expected. And it got me on The Daily Show, which made it all worthwhile.
Mind Wide Open : Your Brain and the Neuroscience of Everyday Life
My first best-seller, and the only book I've written in which I appear as a recurring character, subjecting myself to a battery of humiliating brain scans. The last chapter on Freud and the neuroscientific model of the mind is one of my personal favorites.
Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities, and Software
The story of bottom-up intelligence, from slime mold to Slashdot. Probably the most critically well-received all my books, and the one that has influenced the most eclectic mix of fields: political campaigns, web business models, urban planning, the war on terror.
Interface Culture : How New Technology Transforms the Way We Create and Communicate
My first. The book I wrote instead of finishing my dissertation. Still in print almost a decade later, and still relevant, I think. But I haven't read it in a while, so who knows what's in there!

Comments

Very cool stuff. Makes me think of a really relevant / immediate / local Craigslist. Would be great if you could ask the immediate community in the immediate vicinity to do you a favor (like stand in line). Maybe you could set an expiration date on each request, and add a price tag. "For $20 bucks, will someone get in the Apple line for me within the hour?"

Posted by: Charles | July 24, 2008 at 07:59 AM

Just heard you on RadioLab and thought I'd google and see where you are now (#2!)

Wow - Radar looks very cool! And speaking of the iphone, it would make a fantastic iphone app. It finds your location and brings up the news - I would definitely be interested in that one!

Good luck with the iphone. I broke down and waited in line a week ago. LOVE IT!

I'm all subscribed to your feed now!
-amy

Posted by: amy | July 25, 2008 at 07:02 AM

So that was you...
I thought I saw you gettting off the LIRR in Southold on Wednesday evening through the train window (I was continuing on to Greenport). I am so bummed that I missed the chance to say hi in person! Perhaps that's what comes when we rely on the old-fashioned kind of "eye" radar technology...
It has been a while since my sojourn at Feed, but I remember the time on Spring Street fondly. I check in with your blog periodically and have enjoyed your books. These days I am living in Michigan with my husband, whom I married in March, and finishing up my Ph.D. in English & Comp. Lit. at Columbia. I just happened to be on my way to Orient to spend a week with my family when I saw you. I hope that all is well with you and your family and always welcome your news.
All my best,
Beth McArthur

Posted by: beth | July 25, 2008 at 09:22 AM

i've been thinking a lot about the value of keywords and tags since the twitter summize acquisition. you can tell radar where you are and get lucky that iphone is at the top of your list but what if radar knew that iphone is one of the keywords you are most interested in right now?

Posted by: fred wilson | July 26, 2008 at 04:25 AM

Thanks a lot

Posted by: sohbet odaları | August 07, 2008 at 08:43 AM

This is unrelated to this post in particular, but couldn't find a contact link on your page, just wanted to tell you I found out about this blog and you from the Radiolab about 'Emergence' and I'm already becoming a big fan. Look forward to reading your blog and I just ordered your book on Emergence. See ya!

Posted by: Danny | August 12, 2008 at 11:28 AM

Posted by: seks izle | October 07, 2010 at 08:07 AM