What is Web 2.0

Web 2.0, latest in a string of tech marketing Buzzwords or “Really Big Deal”?

The Web 2.0 phenomena has driven a new boom in Silicon Valley and inspired the launch of literally thousands of new internet companies. Sites branded “Web 2.0” have enjoyed wild success in just about every vertical market online. 

Over the course of 2006 they have become so prevalent online and have even outstripped well established web services in functionality, traffic, reach and profit in a very short space of time. Some comparisons have been drawn between this so called new lease of life to the web and the pre-dotcom bubble before the crash of March 2000 by the cautious, yet they continue to thrive unabated. 

What is Web 2.0?

As with all things online, the Web 2.0 phenomenon is somewhat amorphous. Semantically, tacking a version number to the Web doesn't make sense (and few agree on what it means) but practically, "Web 2.0" refers to a recent rebirth of sites that focus on user empowerment and open-source applications online. There is a loose set of criteria that bind these sites together and creates the synonymous association. In many ways, these elements can be thought of as the formative definition of Web 2.0:

  • User generated and/or user influenced content
  • Applications that use the Web (versus the desktop) as a platform, in innovative ways
  • Similar visual design and shared functional languages
  • Leveraging of popular trends, including blogging, social tagging, wikis, and peer-to-peer sharing 
  • Inclusion of emerging web technologies like RSS, AJAX, APIs (and accompanying mashups), Ruby on Rails etc
  • Open source or sharable/editable frameworks in the form of user-oriented "create your own" APIs

Like many loosely defined, emergent fields, however, Web 2.0 is often said to be in the mind of the observer. Even some of the trendsetters and writers in the field use the phrase "I know it when I see it." The above concepts represent only a rough framework and many sites that fall outside these ideals still rate the classification.

Not all of Web 2.0 is serious business, though. Many "Web 2.0 themed" sites are built just for fun and others are built entirely to satire Web 2.0 or the excitement about it. Take, for example, the Web 2.0 Validator, a tool that will tell you exactly how "Web 2.0" your site is based on how much of the applicable technology it employs. You can also get yourself one of those funky Web 2.0 company names and product with the Web 2.0 Name Generator! There's even Web 2.0 Bingo.

Web 2.0 design

Yes, it also has its own common design elements, here is the shortlist on what you need to get that lively Web 2.0 look!

Major MUST-DO’s:

  • Rounded Shapes 
  • Shades 
  • Sans Serif fonts
  • Pastell v2.0 
  • Footers 
  • Buttons 
  • Font-Size: Oversized 
  • Descriptive HTML (XML style)

Major DO NOT’s:

  • Java Applets (Script is fine though) 
  • Animated GIFs (the blinky ones) 
  • 100% Flash Websites 
  • Visible tables

So who are these new breed of super internet businesses and what do they do? Find out in Part 2 of this article, "Web 2.0, Who Are They?" , available in the next web2grow newsletter.

The opportunity for you... 

Want a Web 2.0 look or functionality for your site, our team of designers and programmers can take your idea and make it a succesful commercial reality, contact us on 1300 13 89 31 for more information.

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