The internet is made of tubes
April 6, 2009 2:08 PM   Subscribe

I took the Filter Line from Baidu to Digg, and I passed Fark and 4chan on the way, but there was no MetaFilter stop!
posted by P.o.B. (44 comments total) 3 users marked this as a favorite
 
Because MetaFilter is the connecting Bus Transit Line MF. We go to far out places for a modest fee, and we've got our share of regular crazies and scenic stops. Never fear, we also connect to the subway at several convenient stops.
posted by cavalier at 2:13 PM on April 6, 2009 [6 favorites]


Is this something I would have to care about to care about?

More seriously, if only just, can someone explain what the point of something like this is?
posted by oddman at 2:20 PM on April 6, 2009


Graphic designer(s) combining their love of websites with their love of the tokyo subway system?
posted by cavalier at 2:21 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


Metafilter isn't underground anymore. Get on the bus!
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 2:21 PM on April 6, 2009 [2 favorites]


Never fear, we also connect to the subway at several convenient stops.

Then how come I keep getting stuck here??
posted by Corduroy at 2:21 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


Is this something I would have to care about to care about?

More seriously, if only just, can someone explain what the point of something like this is?


I'd guess the point is to explain the relationship between the various "hub" sites of the Internet in a easily digestible* form.

*Ironically, I nearly puked when trying to scroll around it earlier this morning
posted by ConstantineXVI at 2:23 PM on April 6, 2009


More seriously, if only just, can someone explain what the point of something like this is?

overall, linkbaiting through cartography.
more specifically, the version we are seeing is final beta of a map of current web trends that information architects japan intend to print a 1,000 copies of for money.
posted by the aloha at 2:30 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


> Then how come I keep getting stuck here??

Because our bus is full of librarians, musicians, and the detailed history of miniature golf.

Did you read that one about the girl who cried at WallE?

Man, I bet if we did that annoying Dig toolbar thing, we could totally get on the map.
posted by mrzarquon at 2:32 PM on April 6, 2009


I don't see BBC on there either, is it just me?
posted by furtive at 2:33 PM on April 6, 2009


I saw this earlier today, and it strikes me as more of a vanity list than anything objective or rigorous. Marc Andreesen? Has he been relevant on the internet since 1995? And why is Coudal Partners on there? This is an example of visualizations being used to make one group's opinion seem like substantive information.
posted by Pastabagel at 2:33 PM on April 6, 2009 [4 favorites]


> This is an example of visualizations being used to make one group's opinion seem like substantive information.

Or a "how to get a higher google page rank"
posted by mrzarquon at 2:38 PM on April 6, 2009


Absolute bunk.

But may I add, I was taught sound design by Martin Stiksel, listed as Mr. Last.fm, when he was but a lecturer a couple of years ago, rather than the quadrabillionaire face of CBS's most east-enderly acquisition he has become. That flake, he never got round to pressing the album our course made - REMEMBER THAT AND GIVE ROBERTA YOUR TENNER INSTEAD!
posted by davemee at 2:45 PM on April 6, 2009


Marc Andreesen? Has he been relevant on the internet since 1995?

You, sire, are obviously out of the loop on Ning.

Or you're right. One of the two. But definitely one of those two.
posted by GuyZero at 2:46 PM on April 6, 2009


More seriously, if only just, can someone explain what the point of something like this is?

Mention a lot of popular websites, and they will be more likely to link to you.

Marc Andreesen? Has he been relevant on the internet since 1995?

He's doing ning which lets people create their own social networking site. Apparently it gets 6.5 million hits a month, according to quantcast, making it about 1.5 times as popular as metafilter. But he's probably just on the list because he's rich and has a blog.
posted by delmoi at 2:46 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


..not searchable? how do I find anything on it?
posted by mhh5 at 3:04 PM on April 6, 2009


Yeah, I spent way too much time earlier today looking and looking for MeFi on that thing. Then I realized that we're like the train to Hogwarts - you have to know which (invisible) gate to go to in order to ride the line.
posted by rtha at 3:08 PM on April 6, 2009 [4 favorites]


Quote-endquote Definitive Lists Of Who's Important and (by exclusion) Who Isn't On The Web: Because, for some people, one high school prom wasn't enough.
posted by Halloween Jack at 3:12 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


I saw this when Anthony from hypemachine was psyched that his site showed up on the image. I then spent about half an hour scanning for metafilter, and was a little sad.
posted by piratebowling at 3:12 PM on April 6, 2009


It's because the technology that MetaFilter uses is based on alien technology, so the stop is hidden from the "norms" using an inverse-tachyon masking algorhythm. You found us, didn't you? Here, take this aluminum foil hat.
posted by not_on_display at 3:15 PM on April 6, 2009


Does anyone know what a high quality poster like this would cost to produce? I just realized if you only took 30% off the top from these you could seriously make out like a bandit.
posted by P.o.B. at 3:20 PM on April 6, 2009


Never fear, we also connect to the subway at several convenient stops.

Then how come I keep getting stuck here??


Our bus runs on small-gauge tracks (it's really more of a trolley), and our time-tables don't really synch up with other lines, and we have a distrust for inter-modal transportation planning.

In other words, we like it here, and we've decided it's best to stick with what we known and do well. Plus some map-makers only chart the paths they want to take.
posted by filthy light thief at 3:26 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


The MetaFilter bus is actually a gigantic multi-legged cat that only children can see.
posted by GuyZero at 3:30 PM on April 6, 2009 [11 favorites]


Wait, wait, wait...does that make Matt...Totoro?!
posted by P.o.B. at 3:51 PM on April 6, 2009


I think we're ALL Bozos on this bus.
posted by Listener_T at 3:51 PM on April 6, 2009 [3 favorites]


Clang, clang, clang goes the trolley
Flag, flag, flag went the thread
Zing, zing, zing went my jokes
Just before the mods went to bed
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:56 PM on April 6, 2009 [6 favorites]


GuyZero - I wish I saw Catbus instead of Tom Hanks as Everyone in The Polar Express.

I think that, based on jaw size alone, cortex would be my pick for Totoro.
posted by filthy light thief at 3:57 PM on April 6, 2009


Next stop: little sister MetaTalk!
posted by GuyZero at 4:01 PM on April 6, 2009


Looked nice, failed to deliver anything interest when scanned. Mind the gap.
posted by mdoar at 4:19 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


I hope they get those typos corrected before they go to print.
posted by boo_radley at 4:31 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


Metafilter is the "Poetry in Motion" between Dr. Zizmore and a Spanish Bud Lite ad.
posted by swift at 5:17 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


I liked how Y Combinator was next to Pirate Bay. I wonder how Y Combinator feels about that?
posted by Nelson at 5:34 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


The makers of this are open to suggestions. Send them a line if you see something out of wack. Also, we were slightly nicer to it last year.
posted by ejoey at 5:46 PM on April 6, 2009


I always like mashups of subway maps. This one is pretty, somewhat amusing, and doesn't include MeFi. Which is good. This site seems to be generating enough income to keep it running nicely. It's grown steadily in members, pageviews and influence. I have concerns about faster growth screwing up the community (even more).
posted by theora55 at 5:51 PM on April 6, 2009


We're off the net - like cyberpunk cool.
posted by Artw at 6:15 PM on April 6, 2009


I was wondering why I had never heard of Ning so I went and took a look. It seems to have a lot of academic sites, various specific classes (Benton AP Literature being one) but also some genuinely strange stuff, like EcoPaparazzi (motto: "Look Out! We take action and pictures to heal the Earth.") I've noticed also some various regular events having Ning sites, like open mics and such. It seems like something one would never come across unless one happened to belong to a niche group that had a Ning site.
posted by Kattullus at 6:38 PM on April 6, 2009


The MetaFilter bus is actually a gigantic multi-legged cat that only children can see.

Maybe not just kids....
posted by Kronos_to_Earth at 7:12 PM on April 6, 2009


We're off the net - like cyberpunk cool.

We're too cool for these punks, anyway.
posted by delmoi at 9:38 PM on April 6, 2009


Larry Lessig is so nice, he's on there twice!
posted by brain_drain at 10:53 PM on April 6, 2009


These fucklers are about as competent at architecting information as Cory Doctorow is at writing science fiction.
posted by blasdelf at 11:50 PM on April 6, 2009 [1 favorite]


These tubes are your tubes
These tubes are my tubes
From the wordpress blog posts
To the AOL rubes
From the YouTube videos
To the eBay scammers
These tubes were made for you and me
posted by bjrn at 2:15 AM on April 7, 2009 [5 favorites]


These tubes are your tubes
These tubes are my tubes
From the 4chan inmates
To the Halo 3 noobs
From the Wikipedians
To the Boing Boing wa-a-nkers,
There tubes were made for you and me!

everybody now!
posted by bicyclefish at 4:40 AM on April 7, 2009 [2 favorites]


These tubes are your tubes
These tubes are my tubes
From the Facebook quiz-bait
to the jiggling iBoobs
From the frothing Kossacks
To the Freeping Ra-a-cists
These tubes were made for you and me!
posted by rusty at 8:03 AM on April 7, 2009 [2 favorites]


We are the Tristero of the internet.
posted by Allan Gordon at 10:24 AM on April 7, 2009


Pete Seeger is going to kick yer rhyming little asses if you guys keep this up.

Don't say I didn't warn you.
posted by Skygazer at 10:54 AM on April 7, 2009


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