Team Creatives

April 23, 2010 - Web 2.0: Are We There Yet?

One of the biggest trends that have come up in the internet recently is the so called web 2.0. In fact, it has become so persistent lately, that it has become the buzzword among web marketers and designers alike. So what is web 2.0 really and why all the fuss about it?

Web 2.0, as have been considered by many web development experts, is supposedly the next step from web 1.0. If you are wondering what web 1.0 is, it is basically everything in the net today. If that's the case, then what is web 2.0 exactly?

According to its proponents, web 2.0 is a combination of emerging technologies and web design ideas. They further said that web 2.0 is designed to provide more user oriented sites to people. They promised that, with the new paradigm, users will not only be able to receive information faster, they will also now be able to distribute information to others.

Blogs are perhaps the earliest form of the emerging web 2.0 trend. With the introduction of blogging, users were given the chance to to share their thoughts and information to others. And since it is only natural for many people to find new ways to send information to others, blogging eventually made way for the emergence of other means like video logging (which just an offshoot of blogging itself) and user generated content sites, such as Youtube and Wikipedia.

However, despite what is seemingly a wide door for opportunities, the emergence of web 2.0 may not be as utopic as it seems. Other experts point out that web 2.0 isn't really that perfect. They also said that there are still a long way to go before web 2.0 can really get a foothold.

One argument that many, including Tim Berners Lee (the inventor of the world wide web), have pointed is that there is, in fact, no such thing as web 2.0. This one can indeed be considered true. Most of the technologies that web 2.0 uses are in fact developed to be used for the already existing web. Thus, going by this, web 2.0 is essentially nothing more than an extension of web 1.0, rather than being an entirely new setup.

Also, many see the term web 2.0 as nothing more than an overhyped buzzword. Again, considering the amount of emphasis given by many marketers and entrepreneurs on the supposed benefits of web 2.0 over the current web, one can be easily overwhelmed and easily believe that it is indeed the way to go. However, as it turns out, there is still some issues that is needed to be resolved in order for web 2.0 to develop further.

The discussion on whether web 2.0 is here to stay or not will likely still be a longone. However, no one can deny the impact it has made,as many many saw the countless possibilities for it.