How do you define real-time?
How exactly do you define "real-time"?
Currently a lot of companies are coming out with a real-time label on some aspect of their service. The trend seems to be:
- Content they serve is now automatically updated without needing viewers to manually reload.
- Content is updated sooner and faster
- Slap a chat on it, call it real time.
- Put some twitter, facebook, openid, what have you and call it social real-time.
I see real-time as things happening at the exact moment, which is updated a bit faster than 10 seconds. But you are real-time with what? The server? Everyone you follow on Twitter? The key is to have someone on the other side to be real time with you. That is what is interesting.
To be Real-time there are some particularly important points:
- Content you're interested in that people provide. (twitter.com updates, friendfeed, digg stories)
- Action sharing, such as screen sharing or browse sharing. (webex solutions, browseology.com)
- Information generated from a source that is time sensitive, not necessarily from the mass of people, but from a single entity. (big events like sporting events)
What's your definition?
