Yes there are different aggregation types and it's probably work putting them into a typology of sorts (not that useful, just enough to give you a vocabulary to use to talk about them). This is placed into the context of a question posed by the Wall Street Journal: "What kind of journalism can my staff produce that is different and valuable enough that people will pay for it online?" Most aggregation doesn't fit into this classification. And in particular, topic-based aggregation almost certainly doesn't - while pattern-recognition might. Now, Tony Karrer says, "I think of Stephen as being one of the biggest topic hubs out there." But this isn't the case - though I write on a topic, I am not a topic hub.
The distinction is critical. There's a lot on the topic of online learning that I don't cover - and there's a lot of stuff from outside the field (properly so-called) that I do cover. Because I am doing pattern recognition in a network, rather than aggregation around a topic. That's why I haven't tried to build a community around my site, why I encourage people to start their own blogs and whatever, why I sent people away from here every chance I get. Now - does this monetize? It's certainly better than some automatic aggregator centred around a topic - but I'm really not sure I could make a living at it based on content sales alone. And that's the important thing - there might not be a type of content different enough and valuable enough that people will pay for it online.
The distinction is critical. There's a lot on the topic of online learning that I don't cover - and there's a lot of stuff from outside the field (properly so-called) that I do cover. Because I am doing pattern recognition in a network, rather than aggregation around a topic. That's why I haven't tried to build a community around my site, why I encourage people to start their own blogs and whatever, why I sent people away from here every chance I get. Now - does this monetize? It's certainly better than some automatic aggregator centred around a topic - but I'm really not sure I could make a living at it based on content sales alone. And that's the important thing - there might not be a type of content different enough and valuable enough that people will pay for it online.
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