Peter K.G. Williams writes about The Small Web and Science. It’s more an overview of the small web movement as a scientist for other scientists, but it echoes a lot of what many have been saying for a while.

This paragraph stuck out to me, though, and I think it bears repeating (emphasis mine):

We can’t, however, take for granted that the architecture of the web will always be quite so friendly to independent operators – protocols and expectations are always evolving. The proverbial “someone” needs to apply pressure to keep the infrastructure of the web friendly to small operators. … My worry here is that the small-web ethos is definitely susceptible to the tendency that you can get in environmentalism and other underdog movements: hoping if enough people just display enough personal virtue, the large-scale problem will solve itself. I doubt that many people would seriously argue that there’s no role for public policy or other forceful efforts in trying to achieve these goals, but I worry the DIY approach can easily become a trap. _Small-scale effort is much easier and yields rewards on much shorter timelines than large-scale action. From what I’ve seen it easily soaks up all of people’s time and energy, leaving nothing left for the big stuff._

It’s good to keep in mind that, just like productivity systems and writing systems and anything that involves upkeep and passion, we can get wrapped up in the details and not pay attention to the larger point of doing it. Like an organizer getting wrapped up in the latest todo app or sorting scheme, and missing the point of doing the work and having the time to do what one wants, that the organization was supposed to enable.