Rethinking the Tools for Thinking Podcast
To build and nurture a community of practice around tools for thinking, as well as make good thinking more available in the world.
We’re wrapping Season One of the [[Tools for Thinking Podcast]]. This page is to design [[T4T Season Two]].
Season One got some enthusiastic responses from individuals, but we didn’t light the sector on fire, nor did we build a very big audience (which may not be a thing we’re aiming for).
We have an opportunity to make it better. Here are some thoughts.
Build a Hive Mind (vs a single podcast)
Have Multiple Podcasts and Hosts
We have one existing podcast, [[Tools for Thinking]], which we can continue producing. That podcast could have multiple hosts, instead of just one.
We also have ideas for other podcasts with different focal areas. For example, a HyperTalk podcast could focus on the history of computing.
The idea is to be flexible and creative hosting a community of podcasts with multiple hosts pursuing multiple quests, intersecting and sharing resources a lot.
Use the Tools
Tools for Thinking ought to use Tools for Thinking! A lot! So let’s.
In fact, let’s leave behind layer after layer of useful materials, building atop the visionary documents that described the potential that computers offered us.
Simplify the Format
Let’s take the production value down a notch (from Riverside recording back to Zoom, with less editing) and not worry about audience size, but instead about utility and accessibility.
Podcast Design Questions
- What tools do we want to use to record, edit and distribute the podcast? To post about it? Other resources?
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How should we coordinate?
- Scheduling on Airtable? Notion? Other?
- Conversations on Discord? Other?
- What roles can people adopt in this community? ([[Ways You Can Participate]])
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Who is interested in participating?
- Jess Martin?
- Maggie Appleton?
- John Underkoffler?
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What organizations might be interested?
- Where is the common virtual ground? [[The Big Fungus]]? [[The Betterverse]]?
- Build diversity in from the start
- Instead of producing a podcast for people to get literate, how about involving them directly?
- What templates/structures do we need so the podcast episodes build well?
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Keep "Tools for Thinking"? Rename it HyperTalk? Something else? (here’s a [[T4T Venn Diagram]]?)
- Where does the main entity live? Who hosts it?
Potential Podcast Episode Topics (for Notion)
- What parts of the early visions have been fulfilled? Which have not materialized?
- How can the early visions improve what we’re building now?
- Why is computer history so white male? Where is the diversity?
- How best to connect computer history to computer literacy?
- How can computer history be made most available?
- What is the curriculum for computer history? In what sequence should people tackle it?
- How do we build a thriving ecosystem here, mixing businesses and the Commons?
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What happens when startups fail?
Potential Podcast Guests (for Notion)
- Dan’l Lewin, director of the Computer History Museum
- Eric Rangell, who has been experimenting with Ted Nelson’s ZigZag
- Eric Eugene Kim, who worked with Engelbart for years
- Adele Goldberg, creator of Smalltalk
- Tech-historian bloggers and podcasters
- Chris Aldrich, who knows this history well
- David Vargas, SamePage
- Sam Arbesman
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