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The life of great websites keeps repeating itself. They start as relatively anonymous, featuring either a great idea, technical innovation or both. They quickly develop an underground reputation, often based on, in part, a willingness to "fight the power" and give individuals an ability to either tweak their nose at or expose the flaws and crimes of established institutions. This combination of brilliance and social rebellion rapidly pushes the site to mainstream awareness and popular appeal. If the technology or idea is novel enough the site is adapted by millions across a very broad demographic as a variety of people or groups adapt it for their own particular needs and uses.

At this point the site enters the radar of corporate America who trips over itself trying to see who can buy up the site first. Owners sell out big time to a Yahoo, Google, Microsoft, Time-Warner type or does the big time IPO (which is essentially the same thing). Site turns mainstream and represses the very thing that made it famous, all in an attempt to maintain a bland, but lucrative, stable and predictable, market share. Adapting to the (changing) least common denominator, in order to achieve the broadest swath of profitability is inevitable. The corporate mentality. I'm not knocking it because it gave me the ability to sit here and vent on the web, but you've got to admit there is a stifling effect which one must be prepared to confront in order to maintain what made life worthwhile in the first place. I'm starting to see a metaphor here.