Instead, 3D printers are now starting to work their way up the "slope of enlightenment" stage, where most progress is achieved.

ENGADGET: The future of higher education: reshaping universities through 3D printing

From the initial Technology Trigger, when software first made blogging easy, to the Peak of Inflated Expectations and the Trough of Disillusionment, thence on to the Slope of Enlightenment and, eventually, the Plateau of Productivity, blogging has passed almost all the way through the Hype Cycle.

FORBES: Self-Publishing's Place On The Hype Cycle