Here are the key concepts and technologies that go into creating the datasphere, from a "blog-centric" point of view.

• Structured Blogging: allows ad-hoc but well-defined data elements to be added to posts
• Tagging: fluidly binds posts and other data sources together across the enterprise
• Microformats: the mechanism to mine and reuse the contents datasphere, to consume data and to mash it up into new applications
• RSS/Atom/Syndication: provides messaging, efficient updating and notification
• OPML/Directories: imposes a hierarchy of well-defined structure on top of HTML pages, weblogs, groups and so forth

Blogs aren't the only route into the datasphere, just the most convenient to talk about. Wikis should be included and there is no why traditional databases and legacy systems could not directly export or translate their data into the datasphere, not unlike how the typical intranet was populated with data in Web 1.0 days.

We'll break out each these technologies later and explore how they will work individually and together.