Since previous columns have covered many of the technical angles, this time I present the debate from the technology adoption angle. As the abstract for the column says, many technologists tend to treat such debates as if they’re purely technical, but of course they’re never that black-and-white. What’s often behind some of the raging “technical” debates we’ve all seen or experienced is simply the difference between the arguing parties in their relative positions along the Technology Adoption Lifecycle curve. Nobody would be surprised at a disagreement over technology between someone classified as an early adopter or visionary (from the far left of the curve) and someone classified as a technology skeptic (from the far right), yet we always seem surprised when two people whose preferences aren’t too far apart on the curve — from the opposite edges of the mainstream band in the middle of the bell curve, for example — don’t see eye to eye, despite the fact that this sort of scenario is quite common. Even small differences in goals for adopted technologies and desired risk/reward trade-offs, along with the inevitable hidden and unstated assumptions resulting from such factors, can cause vigorous debate about what technology or approach is best for a given situation.

When it comes to published explanations of how innovation works and how technologies move along the adoption curve, my favorite author by far is Clayton Christensen. IMO all developers should study and learn from his books, specifically The Innovator’s Dilemma, The Innovator’s Solution, and Seeing What’s Next. All are amazingly insightful works that will open your eyes to how real-life markets react to technological change and advancement.

In this column I try to view and classify the “RPC vs. REST” debate based on Christensen’s theories about innovation and technology adoption. I hope you find it interesting, and as always, I welcome all constructive comments.