Demystifying Web 2.0

The internet is still the something of the wild wild west. Every week something new and creative is put on the web or created to take advantage of this network that connects millions. For over a decade I have been watching this phenomenon from both on the inside and on the outside of all the hype. I can still remember setting up my first Compuserve account and the first web site I ever saw back in 1994.

Today the greatest trend is toward what the "insiders" are calling "Web 2.0" applications. At every networking event I attend, someone uses the buzz word "Web 2.0" like it's the gold sought after back in 1849. Recently, I've started asking these individuals what exactly is "Web 2.0" and what's so new about it? While some give some great examples of how this new trend is changing the use of the web, I venture to say most didn't have a clue.

According to Wikipedia [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0]:

"The term "Web 2.0" describes the changing trends in the use of World Wide Web technology and web design that aim to enhance creativity, communications, secure information sharing, collaboration and functionality of the web."

and goes on to say:

"Although the term suggests a new version of the World Wide Web, it does not refer to an update to any technical specifications, but rather to changes in the ways software developers and end-users utilize the Web."

So Web 2.0 is a "trend" to use the Web in new ways. Some examples might be online communities, blogging, social networking sites, video hosting services, content management sites and web-based applications. Basically if you're reading this then you are a "Web 2.0" user, may be even an expert.

But how new is it really? How long ago did you first check a credit card balance online or do some other type of internet banking? Better yet, how long ago did you first hear the old buzz word "web portal"? All of these examples are using the web in a "Web 2.0" fashion. Intenet banking is a web application of sorts and a news portal utilizes a content management system.

The bottom line is that Web 2.0 is not a new version of the web. Web 2.0 is a new term used to describe how more folks taking advantage of the web and the network that supports it. Sure, As a result some new and innovative technologies have been developed to support these new sites. For example, things like AJAX, RSS, and XML; but they are really just extensions of something created years ago, HTTP.

The big deal is not the technology but how smart people have been able to monetize these trends. Don Tapscott, one of my favorite authors and speakers, and Anthony D. Williams stress that new "Web 2.0" applications are primarily built on "mass collaboration" in their book Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything (ISBN 1591841933). The bottom line is that users of these new applications are contributing greatly to the value these applications bring.

This blog for example, I am making an initial post that hopefully you'll find it informative. In turn, you will leave a comment, thus you will be adding to the value of the initial post. As value increases, more folks will drop by and read what we had to say. Thus driving more traffic and creating more value for everyone involved (me, you and the blog hosting company).

What's interesting is that while the core technology behind the web and Web 2.0 have not changed much. Creative people have come up with ways to use the web. These new and innovative interfaces are still just the tip of the ice berg of whats to come. I have said for years, the way this next generation (or NET generation) will interface with computing technologies will blow us all away. It's still the wild wild west and there's still "gold in them there hills."