Defining Web 2.0

Blogging from Miami....YES!!!!!!


My first task is to write a paper all about Web 2.0 as a statement about where we are now. I will definately be moving on to Web 3.0 stuff later, but it's always good to have some perspective and context.

Here is what Wikipedia has to say about Web 2.0 at this very moment on Miami's miracle mile.

This article talks about who is involved: social-networking, wikis, folksonomies

What they are gaining: creativity, collaboration and sharing between users

Since I've never heard the world "folksonomy" before, I searched for that, and saw that it's been suggested the article for "folksonomy" be merged with "collaborative tagging." My best shot at describing whatever "folksonomy" is supposed to be is perhaps as a cloud of people tagging the things they like at different sites on the internet and thereby creating their own cyber-communities through these tags and posts that have something in common. No buzzword here...no, not at all.

Wikipedia also talks about where the term "Web 2.0" came from. Wikipedia says that the term Web 2.0 "gained currency" at the O'Reilly Media Web 2.0 conference in 2004. So I guess it was around before that but nobody really bothered with it. Hmmm....and it looks like Tim O'Reilly wrote a paper to enlighten us all.

The next paragraph talks about how W3C heavy weight Tim Berners-Lee has "questioned whether one can use the term in a meaningful way, since many of the technology components of "Web 2.0 have existed since the early days of the Web."

Well, at this point it doesn't really matter how appropriate or inappropriate the term is because people use it and know what the term is referring to anyway.

Hey! That reminds me, it's time to check my MySpace page...IN MIAMI. Did I forget to mention that I'm very comfortable in my shorts????? My mom said it was snowing in Atlanta today.

Next up...A big fat list of Web 2.0 technologies and an examination of "The Year of the Tag."

Cheers...FROM MIAMi.

Introduction

This blog currently provides a record of my readings, thoughts and conclusions for a course-elective independant study I'm completing towards a Masters in Software Engineering. The title of my study is "Semantic Web Concepts and Software Engineering."

My goal for this independant study is to not only obtain an understanding of where Web 2.0 is going in terms of technologies, tools and ideas but to apply that understanding to the field of Software Engineering. I'm simultaneously taking a course in Artificial Intelligence, so I'm anticipating some really great overlap with Web 2.0 and Semantic Web concepts.

Since this is not a structured class with a syllabus that's written in stone, I'll be adding resources as I go along. It's amazing to me how even the resources for a class have changed. Instead of reserved readings and lectures, I'll probably be relying heavily on YouTube lectures from various conferences, Wikipedia, and maybe some blogs.

I'm starting with a more traditional resource, a book called, Programming Collective Intelligence by Toby Segaran

Here is the author's blog

In order to understand where Web 2.0 is going, I will first look at what constitutes the concept of Web 2.0. What are the apps, what do they do, why are they different? How is this a different experience from Web 1.0?

This is a really great video I found on YouTube. It was the opener for the Web 2.0 conference.