Anthony J. BradleyA client just asked about the utility of the “A Pattern Language for Communication Revolution” multi-author project. Although I have not read the recent book, I have gone through the Web site.
I would say that the movement has yet to hit many organizations since this is the first client interest I’ve seen. The cause is noble;
“Our “pattern language” is a holistic collection of “patterns” that can be used together to address an information or communication problem. Each “pattern” in this pattern language, when complete, will represent an important insight that will help contribute to a communication revolution.”
I guess with such a lofty goal you are bound to disappoint, at least initially. In my opinion, they use the term pattern loosely. It is basically information on a very large challenge and some ideas on how information and communication technologies (ICT) might address it. The solution statements provided are not even close to adequate in the pursuit of a materiel solution. I would state the content as “Things to Consider When Applying Information Sharing Technologies and Practices to a Particular Challenge or Domain.” The information is very high level and barely scratches the surface of what needs to be accomplished to build social collaboration solutions for these immense challenges (e.g., Global Citizenship, Health as a Universal Right, Anti-Racism). I hope it evolves over time to something more useful because the goal is laudable. But right now it is little more than an interesting and thought provoking read.
How useful do you find these patterns?
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Category: social applications Tags: architecture
