Web 2.0

Tim O'Reilly. Founder of term Web 2.0

The place in IT

Web 2.0 represents the accurate complex concept covering a large number of areas: from design of websites and architecture of the software to new instruments of business. This concept integrates a broad spectrum of technology and social trends which create the new Internet and a new class of web applications. Web 2.0 cannot be identified with technologies. Techniques are the cornerstone in a revolutionary way the new ideas. She turns on a number of the social phenomena: social networks, content created by the user and collective information. The technologies which received popularity during development of Web 2.0 are the means allowing everyone it is easy to participate in development of the websites and applications. Thanks to it blogs, social networks and network objects reached qualitatively new level and became some of the most popular online directions in network now.

Evolution

Web most of which often is also meant a word "Internet" represents set (network) of the websites using hyperlinks for movement between pages. Existence of Web'a is impossible without existence of infrastructure of the Internet. Authorship of the idea of the organization of worldwide network belongs To Tim Berners-Li (Tim Berners-Lee). Without this uncommon personality it is impossible to provide a World Wide Web in the form in which we got used to see it. It and its command possess authorship of identifiers URI/URL, language HTML, the protocol HTTP, the first Web browser and even the first website created in 1991. In 1994 Tim Berners-Li organized Consortium on development of network W3C. This organization undertook the main work on development of Internet network and WWW (World Wide Web). Tasks of consortium are creation of protocols for further development of the Internet and the World Wide Web, internationalization of Network and its big availability to physically disabled people. At the end of the 90th years of the XX century Web and business received a serious push to promoting. In this business also the great number of new players appeared. In Network projects large investments began to flow, stocks of the companies doing business in Network sharply increased. However such model of development initially was not a zhiznesosobna. In 2001 it led to year to so-called crash of dotcoms: securities of Online projects, the majority of which was registered in the domain zone .com (from here and "dotcom"), together with the NASDAQ index promptly fell in price that caused to bankruptcy of many companies focused on business of century Internet. However these events played an important role in emergence of the concept of Web 2.0. On September 30, 2005 Tim O'Reilly, the head of O'Reilly Media, published article under the name "What Is Web 2.0" (What Is Web 2.0) in which drew a conclusion that all these events were premises to emergence of the concept of Web 2.0 offered O’Reilly Media and MediaLive International in the middle of 2004. Tim O'Reilly is considered the founder of the term "Web 2.0".

Software of Web 2.0

Web 2.0 represents the new concept of creation of the user interface the Internet, web pages and content managers. Therefore appropriate will be to clear the main program innovations providing works of this technique.

The Internet as the platform

Classical scheme of work of the Web application

One of the key principles of Web 2.0 is that now the Internet can be used as the operating system. It introduces new advantages to suppliers and buyers of the software and allows to create new products and services when using desktop tools and opportunities in the Internet, strengthenings and development of the existing functionality and also performance of websites and web applications. The design of Web 2.0 is distinguished by simplicity, intuitive navigation, large prints and bright names and allow developers to improve appearance of websites and user interfaces. But the design is not the main factor providing improvement of convenience of using of the software of Web 2.0. Use of AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) allows to create client Internet-applications (rich-client internet applications, or RIA) with very wide functionality which are more interactive and more productive, than usual web applications.

Composition

The era of Web 2.0 generated the new term in web development. It mash-ap which is also called compound (or hybrid) the web application or the page. Constantly growing number of websites is released by XML-channels (RSS or Atom) and Application Programming Interface (API) for developers who allow to mix and compare them for creation of absolutely new, unique services on the basis of these third parties.

Joint work implementation

The most popular Web 2.0 projects confirm an established fact long ago: the easiest way make clients of the company focused on the Intern-business, regular consumers of its products consists in allowing them to participate in formation and development of these products. "Joint work creation" which is the cornerstone of YouTube, Wikipedia, Digg and many others of successful websites Web 2.0 allows them not only to receive millions of visitors a day, but also to reach good use of effect of "collective information"  — the developed rich fund of the useful data created by users.

Beta without borders

The software of Web 2.0 passes from software packages to services of real time which always work and at the same time constantly develop, improve and move ahead. It is new approach to updating and improvement which can constantly be implemented successfully, without system operation interruption now. In the Eternal Beta model users are with - developer and professional testers of applications that gives to software suppliers the chance to accumulate information (a permanent feedback) from the consumer and, therefore, to make services which always meets current demands and preferences.

Concept of Web 2.0 from within

The concept of Web 2.0 radically changed a World Wide Web and a view of users of it. The sense of the Internet, as such changed. Changes happened so imperceptibly that most of their users simply did not notice and apprehended as due. Socialization of Network became the most noticeable, but dragged-out in time event. Users had the amplest opportunities for communication, became not only consumers, but also information sources. Socialization by right is considered one of the most important achievements of Web'a 2.0.

Web services

The concept of Web service is inseparably linked with development of Web 2.0. Actually Web services are meant as the set of applications, set on the server and available through Web. Data transmission happens in the XML format. At the same time applications absolutely lose dependence on the platform, and users can work with them from any the operating system, using the normal Web browser. So, when loading the picture it is possible to make with it a set of manipulations in the field of change of different parameters. Thus, the same Photoshop program or other graphics editor do not require installation directly on the user computer. There is an opinion that behind Web services the future that they will be able to drive the most part of the software out of the market, used today on personal computers. This opinion mistakenly today as now global replacement of "desktop" software with Web services is improbable. First, use of Web services requires permanent connection, and it at the moment is impossible. Secondly, the human factor takes place. For example, accidental wire break by the incompetent employee at the major server station or preventive power outage all at the same station  — the reasons of a rupture of communication or loss of working capacity the server can be weight. Therefore, if there is a replacement usual to us applications Web services, then for such replacement all necessary conditions should be created.

AJAX

Many consider one more aspect of Web 2.0 AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML). AJAX is understood as such approach to creation of the user Web interfaces which gives the chance asynchronously to upload information on the Web page, without rebooting completely page that leads to economy of traffic. However such approach has one big minus: the page at such updating does not change that makes impossible transition between pages back and forth.

AJAX in work

Web syndication

Web syndication  — the simultaneous publication of the same information on the different websites using RSS flows. Initially RSS flows were used on the news websites and in blogs, today the sphere of their application extended, and with their help users receive notifications on updates, content is transferred from one website to another  , etc. Together with AJAX the user has ample opportunities of search and generation of data on the request. As a result the network of independent resources which remind the interrelation communicating vessels takes place: they are connected among themselves with the help of these technologies. Such integration received the name Mash-up and was one of Web'a 2.0 making concepts.

Tags

Web 2.0 brought with himself such phenomenon as tags. Tags describe information which is on the page using several key word that allows to correlate information to any category. Thus, the joint categorization of information using tags becomes possible. There is a spontaneous cooperation of people for the purpose of the organization of information by the methods absolutely other than formal methods of traditional facet classification.

See Also

• Web 2.0 (socialization)
• Web 2.0 (concept minuses)
• Web 2.0 (additional opportunities)

Links

• Portal of Neolabs Web Solution company
• Aspekt laboratory