The web is a world of unlimited choice and unlimited possibilities. So why does everyone choose to use Facebook? Why is the web dominated by a few big companies?

I watched the first part of the BBC documentary The Virtual Revolution yesterday on iPlayer. They made the point that:

When there are no rules, there is nothing to stop those with huge resources dominating everyone else.

Google is obviously the biggest at this point in time, but Facebook is also massive. I don’t really mind Google. They’re big because they’re good and more importantly if I want to use another search engine I can do so very easily.

I feel locked into using Facebook and if I want to use something else I need to persuade all my friends to join me. For example I use Flickr to share my photos, but the majority of my friends don’t want to join Flickr and so they can’t see any of my non public photos.

At one point I had delusional ideas of making the next Facebook. In fact, I was hoping to make the next MySpace, but Facebook beat me to it. That was the capitalist me thinking, but as an individual I don’t really want another social super site that everyone I know uses. I want to publish whatever I want, wherever I want and I want it all to be linked together; perhaps with something clever, like hyper links. I also want a social element and I want privacy. I’d like my friends to be able to view my site and see content that other people can’t such as my personal phone number and photos of our last get together.

Facebook gives us this to some extent, but why does everyone need to be on Facebook. Why can’t we all be on our social network of choice or on our own personal site? Why can’t we do this and still keep up to date with what our friends are doing on their social site of choice?

The web was successful partly because it made a set of tools freely available that anyone could use. Anyone could make a webpage and publish whatever they want. Facebook has added a social layer, but has taken away the choice. If we want to get that choice back we have to build up free and open social tools and take the ones that already exist and make them easier to use.

These tools are already starting to appear such as OpenID and Open Social, but these sorts of tools need to become better and they need to become ubiquitous. We the geeks need to start making sure we use them and improve them. When we build a site with social elements we need to use make them open and think about integrating them with other sites of the user’s choice.

By putting choice back in the hands of the user perhaps the Internet will become a better place full of opportunities for all of us. It won’t matter that the big companies have more resources because collectively we have more.

I'm working on a Jam Jar Collective project at the moment that involves projection and motion tracking. This is a little tester app that hooks up to your webcam and follows any movement it sees. Press 'Start webcam' to have a go. You need to have a webcam and your computer will ask your permission to use it.

This motion tracking app was made using Flash CS4 and ActionScript 3. You can download the source code if you fancy tinkering with it.

The great thaw is upon us now and these snowbots are no more. I've loved the snow, in particular, making stuff out of it. The snowbots are one of my favourite creations. There were a collaboration with the very fine snow artist Squirrel. He created the one on the left, but is also responsible for the eyebrows on mine. We made them while at January's Open Coffee and it was brilliant fun.

You can see more snowbot photos on Flickr.

I've been a freelancer now for two years and things have been going pretty well. The start of a decade seems like a significant time and a good time to think about what I'd like to do in the next ten years.

Collaborate more on projects with interesting people

There's a perfect size job for a single freelancer, but I'd also like to work on more varied and larger projects. Collaborating with other skilled freelancers is a great way to do this. Plus, you get someone to bounce ideas off and you get to learn from the experience of someone else. I've done a few collaborative projects so far and I'd like to bring this to more of my work.

Work with clients more at the ideas stage

As a new freelancer I've found most of my projects have landed on my door at the build stage. Everything has been decided and they just need someone to build it. This has been a great way to start off my freelance career and develop my skills. As I become more experienced I'd like to contribute more to the specification and the design. I'd like to be known for my creative problem solving skills and sought out by clients who want help to improve their business.

Be more proactive about finding new clients and meeting interesting people

I've been very lucky so far and had plenty of clients. A lot of this came from the networking I did when I first set up shop. I met many interesting people, but I've been so busy lately that I've let this slip. I need to do more networking, but I also need to look outside of the web design community if I want more varied clients.

Bring more ideas to life – 50% of income to come from my own projects by 2019

I'm very proud of my ideas book: A little sketchpad I keep with me and jot down my ideas (even the daft ones) as they come to me. Somewhere in that book is a piece of gold just waiting to be discovered.

Remember to have fun

At times working for yourself can be a little bit stressful and feel very serious. It's easy to get bogged down in that and forget how lucky I am to be doing something I really enjoy.

Make time for friends and family

I can be a bit of a workaholic at times and I get so preoccupied with what I'm doing that I forget the most important things. My friends are busy people too, and I've found that I actually need to plan to see them rather than just bumping into them a lot. I will get better at this.

Be more like Pete

Pete was one of my closest and best friends. He also went freelance at about the same time I did. He died just over a year ago and I miss him more than I can say. Pete overflowed with enthusiasm and you couldn't help but be dragged along and be inspired by it. He was also incredibly friendly and genuinely interested in everyone around him. I always felt better about myself after a chat with him. If I can be half the person he was, then I'll do fine in this coming decade.

You?

If you've got any new decade's resolutions or thoughts about mine then please let me know in the comments.