Web 2.0 is not a tangible, PS3-type, ‘new’ release of the www. No one directs or controls it; it arose simply because it is the simplest and most efficient way of using and doing business on the internet. However, there exists internet champions who realized the golden rule and used it to precipitate, in some way, the march towards web 2.0. For example, if you’ve heard of the Google story, you will quickly come to realize that Google played a large part in the web2.0fication of the internet. ‘Don’t be evil’ says it all.
Democracy Things web 2.0 reek of democracy. Just think about some of the features of web 2.0: the blogging revolution, open web programming. Self service advertising (think adsense), social networking, social book-marking… This is, perhaps, a natural consequence of the golden rule. Once you realize that the users are what drive the web, the power of the masses becomes a reality. The users not only use content, they also generate it. Fine exhibits of this phenomenon are flickr and myspace, whose users essentially entertain themselves.
Users not only generate content, they also decide which content is useful i.e. they get to tell other users which content to use. Ironic, isn’t it? This basically works this way: useful content gets ‘tagged’ by someone who likes it, thus making it available to more people (because it is now popular) who may then tag it some more, allowing even more people to see it and suddenly it has gone viral and everyone’s talking about it. This is the rationale behind reddit, digg, del.icio.us, youtube and many other sites.
AJAX This is the technology behind web 2.0. AJAX isn’t really a new technology. Asynchronous JAvascript and Xml is a web development technique for creating interactive web applications. The internet is to make web pages feel more by exchanging small amounts of data with a server, behind the scenes, so that the entire web page does not have to be reloaded every time the user makes a change. This is meant to increase a website’s interactivity, speed and usability.
AJAX makes the web 2.0 revolution possible. It unleashes the real power of java, which was previously an overrated underperformer. Now that java works, web developers can create truly interactive AND usable web applications that can take advantage of the golden rule and integrate democracy.
Other Posts in this Series:
So, you want to go web 2.0?
web 1.0
Web 2.0: All the rage?
Back to basics & the Golden Rule.
web2.0fication?? Is that a new word 🙂 ? That’s a great series of posts. Wired magazine puts it this way:
Yet most here remember the bust, how the city emptied and dotcommers fled. But this time it’s different. This time the bloggers, not the suits, run the show. Or rather, the bloggers are the suits. And this time they’re doing it right. So now it’s time to celebrate.
😉 What can I say, I lacked a better word so I just coined it. ‘web2.0fication’ sounds kinda cool, though.
Thanks for the comment AND the link. I think wired magazine said it best. Now the little man runs the show!! Who’s got the champagne?