Read This Now: ‘Read Write Own’ - A Manifesto for the Web We Deserve

Alright, folks, gather ‘round. I’m about to drop some knowledge that’s going to make you want to grab your pitchforks and storm the castles of big tech. There’s a book out there that’s blowing minds and inspiring change, and it’s called “Read Write Own: Building the Next Era of the Internet”.

First things first, let me be clear: nobody’s paying me to say this. I’m just a developer who’s sick and tired of watching the internet’s early promise get stomped on by the powers that be. And this book? It’s the manifesto we’ve been waiting for.

The internet was supposed to be this wild, wonderful place where users had the power. Remember RSS? It was like having the keys to your own digital kingdom. But then, the big bad wolves of tech came along and blew our houses down. Centralization became the name of the game, and we went from being customers to being products.

“Read Write Own” is here to remind us of what we’ve lost - and what we can still reclaim. It’s a deep dive into the history of how we got here, and a roadmap for where we can go next. And let me tell you, the destination is a decentralized future where users are back in the driver’s seat.

The core problem, as the book lays out, is ownership. We’ve handed over our data, our identities, and our digital assets to the tech giants, and they’re not giving them back without a fight. But here’s the thing: we’ve got weapons of our own. Blockchain, baby. It’s not just for crypto bros and NFT hype beasts. It’s a toolkit for building a web where creators and users hold the power.

This book isn’t just a history lesson or a technical manual, though. It’s a rallying cry. As developers, we have a choice to make. We can either sit back and watch the web continue to become a corporate dystopia, or we can roll up our sleeves and start building the alternatives.

We have the skills. We have the vision. We just need the will to create protocols, apps, and platforms that honor the web’s original vision of empowerment. We need to build a web that serves people, not just profits.

The message of “Read Write Own” is simple, but profound: the internet should belong to us, the users. The era of big tech stewardship has failed. It’s time for us, the developers, to pick up the torch and light the way to a brighter future.

I’m not going to lie, reading this book lit a fire under my ass. It gave me hope, but more importantly, it gave me a sense of purpose. As a developer who’s been disgusted with the status quo for too long, I found myself nodding along with every page, and by the end, I was ready to join the revolution.

So, here’s my recommendation: read this book. Read it now. And then, let’s get to work. Let’s build the web we deserve, the web we were promised. It won’t be easy, but nothing worth doing ever is.

The internet’s early promise of empowerment is still within reach, but it’s up to us to grasp it. “Read Write Own” is the guide we need to get there. So, what are you waiting for? Grab a copy, grab your keyboard, and let’s start building the future.