Personal and interpersonal Web communications, information and data flow, is easy when done correctly.

The right way is when tech folks set up infrastructure, then stay out of the way, except for periodic maintenance and support, or evolutionary steps.

Tech in the middle, tech that interferes and bottlenecks interpersonal communications, impedes effective communication.

The idea of relational database management systems (RDBMS), is to find ways to relate information to make it meaningful, useful, and easily consumed by end users, ideally with zero duplication of data, and minimum effort. The same things we all want from the Web.

The relationships in DB terms are roughly:

• Many-to-Many
• One-to-One
• One-to-Many
• Many-to-One

Many-to-Many - Google

Today's Web suffers from many of the same problems as the early databases. Tremendous duplication of effort is the foremost problem. An inability to quickly find just the information needed in the mess, another problem.

Enter Google and a host of others to fill the need for a Many-to-Many relationship.

Many-to-many on the Web is a huge relational database management proposition. Very few will ever have the capability to do it at all, let alone do it well.

One-to-One - talk

Good old fashioned conversation, then the telephone, then a cell phone, now a mobile device. Texting, SMS, MMS, all one to one, no need to go out on the Web for these types of communications. No way for the Web to archive, search, or categorize these communications.

One-to-Many, Many-to-One - Twitter and others

Twitter - Web Publishing in 140 characters or less from any cell phone. The same stuff that was formerly one to one, can now be one to many.

The possible uses are only just beginning to be explored. Since each 140 lines is unique to an individual, there is little duplication, but great value in the summations of all the efforts. Database types can appreciate that.

The infrastructure itself could be easily duplicated by anyone who understands core Web technologies. But with the huge user base and great service to that base, Twitter has become an entity unto itself.

Forums

Before Twitter and still today, forums of every sort, where all may bring their knowledge and opinions to share. Very dependent upon good moderators and the good graces of whomever is hosting the infrastructure. Given time, newbies learn the cast and can sort the wheat from the chaff for themselves.

MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, Ning, YouTube, Flickr, etc

Uncountable numbers of social networking formats. Many have come and gone, some of these will be gone in the future, others will appear. It is almost a discernible pattern. A thriving community and infrastructure grows as it serves a well defined niche market. Then it runs headlong into the troubles of its own success, as it tries to broaden scope and competition grows.

Chase the Tail or Take Control.

There will always be a "next great thing" in the one-to-many, many-to-one space. The point that venture capitalists and top down models miss, is that as soon as they are no longer the shortest path to the desired information, they are interference along the way. Facebook started roughly as an online gallery for pictures of the prettiest girls on a college campus. Not surprisingly, wild popularity ensued, in this shortest path information model.

As a niche effort grows to become more things to more people, the infrastructure necessarily becomes top down. Instead of direct, point to point, an intermediate level must be navigated, point->to top level->back down to another point.

Chasing the tail, means figuring out how to join yet another latest model that interferes with shortest path information flows.

In the real world, I can walk into a supermarket, buy some bananas, and leave happy. In the bazaar of the internet, I must fight my way past flashy animations, all screaming click me, please click here, to get what I seek. It need not be that way.

Take Control of the Interpersonal Web.

In the time spent chasing the tail, your own Web infrastructure could be started or enhanced. Your customers and clients will appreciate the shortest path to your information, products, and services.

With a tiny bit of infrastructure, the path can be Cell phone->Supermarket site->Bananas, with the price and availability updated in real time via automations. No special searching or flashy animations required or desired.

Shortest path information flow is the way the Web was designed to be used.

Don't let fear of infrastructure impede the most powerful communications tool ever. Find the shortest paths to the experts who develop the Web in ways that make it work best for everyone.