Web 3.0 and the Gamification of EVERYTHING?

These days, we hear the term "Web 3.0" come up quite a bit.

Until fairly recently, I thought it was a pretty specialized thing that only a limited number of nerds and bleeding edge developers really were seriously working on, but I've actually started hearing that term crop up in conversations among "regular" folks.

Do I Even KNOW What I'm talking About???

I'll be the first to admit that I probably don't know a whole lot about Web 3.0 yet, but at the same time my initial impression — and that's what I keep coming back to — is that web 3.0 essentially sounds like the gamification of absolutely everything.

On one hand, there's something appealing and exciting about that, but on the other hand I can't help but wonder whether that means we're creating a world in which everybody is expected to basically be "on" 100% of the time.

Frankly, the thought of having to be "on" 100% of the time is not very appealing... and vaguely reminds me of one of the more disturbing episode of the series "Black Mirror."

Decentralization and Competition

Or maybe you don't actually have to be on 100% of the time, but then you have to be willing to accept it if you choose not to be on 100% of the time you're going to be losing ground to those who are more dedicated than you. Seems like an entire new level of the intense competition in a new format of free enterprise!

I do like the idea that we're all basically "companies of one" and that we would have ownership in everything we do, but I also have a feeling that the end result would turn out like pretty much all human endeavors ever do: a handful of people at the very top end up basically being the kingpins who control everything and the rest of the world is scraping by, by the skin of their teeth.

I'm sure there are those who would argue that that's just the way it is when you are part of the human experience, and all I can think of to respond to that is to pose the question of "how is that any BETTER than what we're already doing?"

New Doesn't Mean Better... it Just Means New!

And that's pretty much what I've always done when somebody comes up with something new or something new comes along. I can't just be excited about it purely for the reason that it's new; I want to know how it is better. And if it's not better why should I care about it... just because it's new?

Of course, the cynic in me wants to ask the obvious question: "You say Web 3.0 is great, but what about Web 4.0?"

Yes, there is already a web 4.0 in the planning, and we're probably still 6 to 8 years from web 3.0 being fully implemented and operational in the sense that it's what's considered "standard!" Just guessing, on that one.

Of course, around here everybody's very enthusiastic about web 3.0 because Hive happens to be a blockchain and we happen to be decentralized, and one of the core premises behind Web 3.0 is decentralization.

Don't get me wrong I think decentralization is a fine idea, but every now and then there are aspects of life that — it seems to me — just don't lend themselves terribly well to being decentralized. Which is why I've always been cautioning people not to throw the Web 2.0 "baby" out with the bath water!

In some ways, I'm glad that I am getting older, and perhaps I will miss out on having to learn about a bunch of this stuff. It's not that I wouldn't want to learn it... perhaps but I just feel a little bit too tired to be in a "game" that is a competitive scenario in every aspect of my life all the time.

What About the Non-Competitors?

I don't feel all that competitive, at the best of times. I'm more oriented towards a cooperative approach. I don't want to have to worry about my "rank," all the time!

I just hope that Web 3.0 affords me a place to make it from point A to point B as somebody who is not trying to be at the top of the pile! Hopefully that will be an OK thing...

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great Sunday!

Comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation! I do my best to answer comments, even if it sometimes takes a few days!

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Created at 2023-10-29 01:06 PDT
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