Take a look at the older BBC "Connections" documentaries by James Burke.[1] They're really fascinating, however they have a strong editorial presence. In my view, like with Sagan's Cosmos, the presence of the series creator's point of view can make the content more interesting than a collection of data alone.
However, people do really enjoy TV tropes, so a huge effort to categorize everything could attract a huge audience, too. Such a site would be a good source of inspiration for new ideas incorporating older ones, too.
The editorial aspect could be in the "Socio-economic backgrounds, anecdotes, etc. what led to invention X, and how X was important for Y, etc." Part of why I found A Short History of Nearly Everything so great is the backdrop in which Bill Bryson is able to frame the great inventions.
However, people do really enjoy TV tropes, so a huge effort to categorize everything could attract a huge audience, too. Such a site would be a good source of inspiration for new ideas incorporating older ones, too.
[1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plgLCYha7pE&list=PLGi4Jd5YfR_...