Module 2: Introduction - What is Web 2.0?

Web 2.0



JESS3 / The State of The Internet from JESS3 on Vimeo.http://vimeo.com/9641036

Before I start with Web 2.0, I will first look at Web 1.0, as we know it: World Wide Web. The WWW emerged in 1991 up and till 2000.

Some of the characteristics include:

• The inventors of the WWW wanted to incorporate hyper textual interactivity. This was "greatly theorised, but slow to emerge"
• The WWW was really clunky with static homepages. The websites could only be accessed or be created by web designers. In other words, the WWW was not use-friendly or written for everyone to use effectively and efficiently
• So, only the designers could change the hypertext. This means when you apply for a website, you had to wait until the product was ready for you. You could not go and change things the way you wanted it to be.
• The WWW was more focused at read-only instead of the read-write dream.
• There was also the dream of 'cyberspace', matched with the reality of Dial-up speeds.
• WWW became known as Web 1.0. (Retronym)

It was Tim O'Reilly that came up with the term Web 2.0. Web 2.0 has the following features:

• It is a social software with micro formats and technical terms
• It is Data driven
• Users can create their own Wikis, blogs, and media
• There is standardization
• Web 2.0 is about compensation, readers can interact with each other
• There are many user-friendly tools such as, flickr, wikis ajax
• Videos and content can easily be shared
• The tools on Web 2.0 ensure that users can participate in full

Tim O'Reilly describes the differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 as follows:

Web 1.0                                                          Web 2.0

• Mp3.com                                                 Napster
• Personal websites                                  Blogging
• Britannica Online                                   Wikipedia
• Publishing                                              Participation
• Content management systems              Wikis
• Directories (Taxonomy)                         Tagging (Folksonomy)

What is amazing is that 9 million people are using social networks. Facebook is the highest. This indicates that Web 2.0 is here to stay.

Reference
O, Reilly, T. (2009). What is Web 2.0? Design patterns and business models for the next generation of software. Retrieved from http://oreilly.com/web2/archive/what-is-web-20.html?page=1