changing domains

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	We understand things as belonging to domains.
	Some things within a domain are perceived as stable, essential, unchanging.
	For many players within this domain, these things are regarded as untouchable, so the perception of stability is self-fulfilling.
	However, new players often don't share these perceptions, and may find new modes of operation within the domain that challenge and threaten the established players.
	Understanding the dynamics of changing domains may help you escape from domain groupthink.

Questions

	How does a domain change?
	How does a domain resist change?
	How does a domain flourish by changing components?
	How does a component flourish by changing domains?

References

Chris Alexander et al, A New Theory of Urban Design

Oxford University Press, New York, 1987.

Alexander shows how large complex yet coherent structures can emerge from an organic process.

Stewart Brand, How Buildings Learn

Viking Penguin 1994.

Brand shows how buildings adapt to changing requirements over long periods. The book inspired a 6-part TV series by the BBC.

Comments critical of the architect Lord Rogers have been removed from the British edition.

Kevin Kelly, Out of Control

UK edition, Fourth Estate, 1994.

Kelly shows how large complex systems maintain stability and other emergent properties, outwith human management.

Richard Veryard, The Component-Based Business

In this book, I show the business opportunities and challenges of new modes of system constructing and evolution.

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