The term Web 2.0 suggests a new version of the World Wide Web. It does not refer to an update to Web technical specifications, but tochanges in the ways Internet is used.
To take it in the right spirit, the conversion of websites from knowledge sources to knowledge sharing platform is all about the next generation of WWW i.e. Web2.0. Wiki sites, social networking sites, web-tops, blogs, forums, RSS/Atom feeds, folksonomies (cloud or tags on content) are just doing the same. Now we can not just take information from the sites but can change the original information or data and add more about any specific topic. Some of the most common Web 2.0 sites are Wikipedia, eBay, Amazon, imdb, Orkut, Blogger, Yahoo!360, My Space, and several others. User reviews, blog or article comments and discussion forums also comes under Web 2.0
All in all Web 2.0 is not about any new technology but the implementation of the existing technology in a more innovative way so that Internet can work more than just knowledge base but will work as a plate form for knowledge exchange. The Web 2.0 can also be referred as a revolutionary move as the data or information is now being collected, updated, voiced and shared by the people and for the people. It may be called democratization of the web.
The visible changes which can be seen in the current patterns of web utilization start from ratings and public opinion polls. Second major change comes as SharePoint from Microsoft is taking preference as the Intranet for most of the companies. Now you can take part and voice your opinion in forms of comments, polls, ratings, blogs and wiki. The trust on the users or visitors is the key here. Though, the moderations are still there.
On a second thought, if you are looking for some information, the first thing you will do will be the Google. Here the search engine optimization of the site is more important then the URL itself. It gives the content writer the freedom to write and provide the information wherever and whatever he/she wants.
The Platform approach also gives a new way to service based sites than packaged software. Just as the Web 2.0 is about the innovation in the utilization of the web, the technology which makes it strong is also not new but restructure of the much popular old technologies. Ajax is one of the best examples for the purpose. A restructure or a new, cleverer use of Java Script and XML makes the whole Ajax more users friendly and powerful. Also the standard XHTML also brings in the new more neat and supportive base for Ajax to be crawled upon.
As O’Reilly said, “Web 2.0 is the business revolution in the computer industry caused by the move to the Internet as platform, and an attempt to understand the rules for success on that new platform.”
The author of this article has 8 years of experience in Web Design and activities in the domain and presently works as a Sr. Web Designer at Rishabh Software Pvt. Ltd., Vadodara. He can be reached atdushyant.kanungo@rishabhsoft.com. All views expressed in this article are of the author and may not represent the views of the organization he represents.
Good article. I thank you posting that. Please accept my apology for my less good English Skills, I am from Austria and it is kind of new to me.
What an alluring notice about search engines. I’m honestly very dumbstruck that that has not really been enunciated earlier to such a great length.
Hello – just a brief note to say thank you for this article. Very educational.
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