WEB 2.0 

6.1 Introduction: 

Web 2.0 is the name used to the describe the second generation of the world wide web, where it  moved static HTML pages to a more interactive and dynamic web experience. Web 2.0 is focused  on the ability for people to collaborate and share information online via social media, blogging  and Web-based communities. 

Web 2.0 signaled a change in which the world wide web became an interactive experience between  users and Web publishers, rather than the one-way conversation that had previously existed. It also  represents a more populist version of the Web, where new tools made it possible for nearly anyone  to contribute, regardless of their technical knowledge. 

It’s a simply improved version of the first worldwide web, characterized specifically by the  change from static to dynamic or user-generated content and also the growth of social media. 

6.1.1 What are the examples of Web 2.0 applications? 

∙ Hosted services (Google Maps) 

∙ Web applications ( Google Docs, Flickr) 

∙ Video sharing sites (YouTube), 

∙ wikis (MediaWiki), 

∙ blogs (WordPress), social networking (Facebook), folksonomies (Delicious),  Microblogging (Twitter), 

∙ podcasting (Podcast Alley) & content hosting services and many more. 

6.1.2 Advantages of Web 2.0: 

∙ Available at any time, any place. 

∙ Variety of media. 

∙ Ease of usage. 

∙ Learners can actively be involved in knowledge building. 

∙ Can create dynamic learning communities. 

∙ Everybody is the author and the editor, every edit that has been made can be tracked. ∙ User-friendly. 

∙ Updates in the wiki are immediate and it offers more sources for researchers. ∙ It provides real-time discussion. 

6.1.3 The key features of Web 2.0 include: 

1. Folksonomy – free classification of information; allows users to collectively classify and  find information (e.g. "tagging" of websites, images, videos or links) 

2. Rich user experience – dynamic content that is responsive to user input (e.g., a user can  "click" on an image to enlarge it or find out more information)

3. User participation – information flows two ways between the site owner and site users by  means of evaluation, review, and online commenting. Site users also typically create user generated content for others to see (e.g., Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia that anyone  can write articles for or edit) 

4. Software as a service (SaaS) – Web 2.0 sites developed APIs to allow automated usage,  such as by a Web "app" (software application) or a mashup 

5. Mass participation – near-universal web access leads to differentiation of concerns, from  the traditional Internet user base (who tended to be hackers and computer hobbyists) to a  wider variety of users 

6.1.4 Difference between Web1.0 and Web2.0