The Internet is the innovation of my lifetime. It’s one of those things my grandchildren will probably call me about in 40 years for a school project.

“Grandpa, do you remember when the Internet first started?” they’ll ask.

I’ll give them some crotchety reply about dial-up, Hotmail and the Hamster Dance.

But what the Internet and technology looks like for my children and their children depends a great deal on the policies and direction set by our future leaders.

First impressions mean a lot, and right now I’m not exactly inspired by John McCain. Technology is not listed as an issue on his Web site (There is a Technology Voter’s Guide from CNET News.com with responses from McCain).

Barack Obama’s Web site does have a section on technology. He’s also said he would appoint a Chief Technology Officer to his cabinet.

Then there’s the Yahoo News video that posed the question “PC or Mac?” to the Republican candidates.

There’s a chorus of “PC” until they get to McCain, who responds, “Neither, I am an illiterate that has to rely on my wife for all the assistance I can get.”

Technology offers huge opportunities for this country. Technology, in many forms, has propelled this nation forward as a leader in many industries. However, it’s often a marginalized issue when it comes to presidential politicking.

Chris O’Brien of the San Jose Mercury News has called on Obama and McCain to debate science and technology.

ScienceDebate2008.com is collecting signatures to make the debate a reality.

I think it’s a great idea and hopefully it will happen.

Net neutrality is a big question that needs to be talked about, but what questions would you have for the candidates? Portable electronic health records? The Freedom of Information Act?

“TimesPeople is a new way to discover what other readers find interesting on our site — and to make recommendations of your own.”

Sounds cool! But is it?

What I like:

1. Browser Integration
It works seamlessly with Firefox 3, embedding a narrow toolbar at the top of nytimes.com. To me, this is a great method for incorporating social networking and sharing into any site. Make it prominent and accessible from every page without getting in the way.

2. A Newspaper (an old one, at that) Trying Something New
It’s something that promotes user engagement with the site and each other, and I think that’s paramount for news organizations who want to thrive.

A few suggestions:

1. Offer Better People Search
Right now you can only search by name. Why not search by topic and city? I’m finding it’s really hard start building out my contacts list. A “recommended” friends list based on similarities in sharing habits would also be nice.

2. Build a City Center
The main TimesPeople Web site should include most recommended items in various news categories and media (slideshows, video, etc.). You could also feature users, perhaps some celebs? In general, I’m looking for some place to browse everyone’s activity. Make it resemble a busy market.

3. Make Adding Content and Commenting Easy
It’s not very clear or obvious (which it should be) how to add a story. I had to scroll down to the bottom of a blog post I was viewing and click “Share,” revealing a generic “Recommend” link. Had I not visited the FAQs, I never would’ve figured this out. I should get a big fat add link and icon in my TimesPeople toolbar at the top of the page. Also, it’d be nice if I could comment on links I’m posting. Why am I recommending a particular story or multimedia piece?

4. Offer More Robust Profiles
This will probably come as the service matures, but it’d be nice if I could link up my Web site, my Twitter account, Facebook profile, etc. Also, a user profile page could server as a personalized feed reader, where I could add and view stories from specific topics or writers from the Times.

There’s a lot of potential here and I commend the Times for trying something like this.

Feel free to check out my feed and add me as a contact.

Update: You can also check out a video interview with some of The Times developers produced by beet.tv.