[pmoriarty]

"unlike physical real estate, the internet can be a potentially boundless space and there's room in it for everyone"

There is room for everyone, but what kind of place is it? The observation is that it's no longer what it was, and that something special was lost.

I wouldn't place the blame on the "tourists". First, there are no toursits. Everyone is here to stay. Second, the nerds played a huge role, using their skills and knowledge to make the internet what it is today. Corporations and governments also rushed in to claim their stake, try to take ownership and control -- often quite successfully.

The Gold Rush transformed California, and so did the Internet Rush, if it could be called that, transform the Internet itself. I'm not sure how it could have remained as it was, like in a museum. The use of new technologies alone would have changed it.

[icedchai]

Yep. The internet of today feels so much different than the internet of the early 90's, it may as well not even be the same medium...