Digital Sharecropping? Hah!

Jeff Atwood of CodingHorror seems to have a problem with user-generated content. He calls it "digital sharecropping". He includes a black and white photo of black people working a dusty field, just in case you didn't get the reference.

The gist of his analogy goes like this:

• Users put their own work into building their particular segment of a much larger site.
• The much larger site puts ads next to the work, and reaps profits.
• The user receives nothing in return.

It's that last part that isn't true. The site provides a cheap and easy means of publishing on the internet - much easier than doing it all yourself. This particular generation differentiates itself from GeoCities, et. al., by providing additional tools for tracking related users and topics.

I think few of the people who publish on these sites are unaware that the hoster is trying to make money off of their work. At the beginning of his article, he repeats a story about a woman who contributes to a site. She calls it a "labor of love".

I think she knows exactly what she is doing. It's a hobby, it keeps her busy, and satisfied. What is so difficult to understand about that?

I don't begrude venues the opportunity to make a profit for providing a comfortable environment. I know of few people who do (you dirty smelly hippie commies!) To be honest, I'm glad that Mr. Atwood at least thinks about the topic, but really: it isn't all that big a deal.