Comprisal of Web 2.0
Society speaks quite eloquently yet warily of Web 2.0 as though it was a part of the vernacular since ancient times. Yet many do not under what it encompasses nor realize how simple Web 2.0 is. Web 2.0 is not the newest version of the Internet. Rather it is, “…a loose cloud of capabilities, technologies, business models, and philosophies.” [2; pg 299] Since the coining of the term in 2004 at the O’Reilly and Media Live International Conference, Web 2.0 can be described as a new approach to the web. With Web 2.0, collaborative work is dramatically emphasized and data is shared more openly amongst users and their applications, websites and so on. Web 2.0 surrounds itself around its most primary aspect: interaction. If the web could be compared to driving a car, the web would be considered the driver whereas the operation system would be considered the passenger.
Communication Medium & Web 2.0
There is no doubt that communication has been circulating on the Internet since the beginning of its creation. The Internet’s creation could be attributed to the United States Department of Defense in the 1960’s. This is the same time the Cold War between Russia and America was entwined. Therefore, the American military launched the Arpanet which was their form and the first form of the Internet. The idea behind the Arpanet was to send messages to different American military agencies without being intervened by intruders. Hence, communication on the Internet was born. When conforming to these guidelines, communication has subjected itself to a one way street. For instance, e-mail. One used to send an e-mail to another person yet the chances of that person being logged on at the same time and responding within minutes or seconds was so miniscule. People do not have to wait an hour for a large embedded e-mail to arrive or wait to log into their computer to check their email. Rather, with Web 2.0, people can check their e-mail through hand-held devices or through other applications such as Google. With Web 2.0 we are now confronted with applications such as Google Wave. Google Wave is a Google application with tremendous capabilities. Google Wave includes an e-mail portion, chat portion but more importantly it focuses around collaboration. Society, especially American society, is no stranger to working abroad or internationally. With that said, Google Wave eliminates territorial barriers. Google Wave allows people to work collaboratively in an elegant form. Person A can write a document send it to Person B, where Person B can edit it and send it back to Person A. This can all be done while Person A is watching their screen in Texas and actually visualizing the changes occur before their eyes, all while Person B is in Canada. Once again, Google Wave allows for collaboration to occur in real-time with people across borders. The professionals no longer have to board a plane to hold a meeting. Web 2.0 applications, such as Google Wave have changed communication in such a significant way and will only continue to do so.
Websites, which have been around for a long time, now circumvent around the same ideas of Web 2.0. Previously, professionals would be paid an abundant amount of money to launch grade A websites. For the most part, people within society would have no ability to comment or interact with the site. Today, Web 2.0 has changed all of that. As opposed to professionals only having their work put on the Internet, society has been introduced to user-generated content. Just about anyway can log into their computer, upload their pictures, their videos, their opinions [via blogs, forums, etc] and have it on the Internet within an extremely short time frame. Nevertheless, it is rare for new websites to be launched when they are completely executed. The idea of soft-launching websites has become the norm as well as having area to post your opinions and comments.
Interestingly, smart businesses have learned to use Web 2.0 to their benefit. For instance, Burger King took on a campaign to allow people to use the “king” in their homemade videos for www.heavy.com. Inevitably, this creates more brand loyalty at a fraction of the cost. In an interview with Heavy.com’s CEO, it is clear that user-generated content is so imperative to comprehend. By far, Web 2.0 does not color in the lines and it certainly does not abide by the rules. Communication on the Internet has become fast, cheap, convenient, extremely accessible, profitable and much more.
Social Media Sites
As mentioned previously, Web 2.0 has allowed people to become much more interactive. With that interactive notion in mind, the popularity of social media sites have boomed. For this examination of Web 2.0, Twitter and Facebook will be focused upon. Twitter began in 2006 as a privately owned company with much to offer. It is a network that allows its’ users to tweet about what they want all within 140 computer characters [keyboard strokes]. Any computer operating system can handle Twitter, which makes it accessible to all.
An interesting article was written by New York Times writer, J. David Goodman. He recently wrote an article on how Twitter is changing the way of life. Years ago, for one to live in Manhattan, have their bicycle stolen and try to recover it, would be a lost cause. Today, with the assistance of Web2.0 and social media sites like Twitter, it is now an open source. On the morning of March 2nd, 2010, Austin Horse, a NYC resident, locked his bicycle just to have it stolen within 10 minutes of entering a store. Scared to ride the subway, he felt at a loss so he posted a Twitter message [from his cell phone] stating the details of his stolen bike. Someone who had read his Twitter message recognized the bicycle in the Lower East Side. Around 6:30 P.M. that same evening, Mr. Horse was in fact reunited with his stolen bike. The amount of time to recover a stolen good has decreased a great deal. Police departments are no stranger to utilizing Twitter. Why not use a social media site with such huge audience numbers that is free to help assist in situations such as that just described. According to Discovery News, “When Milwaukee Police wanted to get word of a murder out quickly, they did it in 113 characters on Twitter.” [1] The Milwaukee Police Department is a prime example of how influential Web 2.0 truly is. The capabilities are endless. Think about when an Amber Alert is designated. How do people usually find out about it? Television – but what happens to people who work and don’t get the chance to watch television until they come home. With social media sites such as Twitter, police can alert the public instantaneously where people would possibly receive or look at the message more frequently as opposed to the television.
Continuing with social media sites, the next analysis will be geared towards Facebook. Facebook, a social media site, was first created in 2004. At first, Facebook was only meant to niche itself as a network for Harvard students. It eventually spread other Ivy League schools until it exploded. Today, there are over 400 million active users on Facebook. Facebook is used by the young, the old, the male, the female and quite literally everyone. Many companies also use Facebook to advertise and communicate with their customers. Facebook enables companies to advertise through web analytics and create their own applications to put out to the public. Also, Facebook has its own applications such as messaging [similar to e-mail], wall posting, commenting, chat and the ability to express your freedom by uploading pictures and videos. However, the interesting aspect of Facebook is the “other” applications. People can create their own applications. Facebook spells out how to do so with the following link, Facebook Developers | Get Started. Even the United States Transportation Command launched its official Facebook page in March 2010 to get the latest news out as quickly as possible. To check out their official site click the following link: U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) | Facebook.
Social media sites are a portion of what comprises Web 2.0. However, social media sites are a pinnacle key to unlocking the Web 2.0 vault. The amount of traffic and people utilizing these sites are absolutely incredible. Nevertheless, agencies, businesses, schools and many more, would be foolish not to advocate through social media sites. The amount of bargaining power users have on these sites is tremendous and should not be taken granted for. The power of instant information is key within the lives of many.
RSS Feeds
Another key attribution of Web 2.0 is RSS Feeds. RSS feed is an acronym for really simple syndication. This has changed communication tremendously. For example, analyze a newspaper. When a daily newspaper is written it is essentially finalized in stone. If an event occurs at 5:00 PM in the evening, it will not be featured in that day’s newspaper rather it will be presented in the next day’s newspaper. RSS feeds allow people to view up to date news, information or just about anything in real time. Even Facebook has a RSS feed without it being noticeable. Facebook’s news updates is its’ own version of RSS feeds but many do not even realize it. The same idea of RSS feeds occur with Facebook’s news updates. People update their statuses or who they’ve commented and it is publicized in real time. Web 2.0 is not afraid to take a situation by the horn. Regardless of which way one examines the situation, RSS feeds and Web 2.0 is changing the way people live their lives.
Web 2.0 Within Education
Finally, the education sector is also being impacted by Web 2.0. Younger and younger children are being taught the importance and correct way to utilize technology. It has come to the point in society where education is being taught completely through the virtual world. Second Life, an online virtual world where one can purchase land and so on, is a new form of education. Professors are conducting their class with the Second Life application. Colleges are even offering the opportunity to complete a degree solely online. For instance, Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York offers numerous different degrees completely online such as their MA in Communication and MBA program. Marist College cleverly understands the advantages to offering these programs online and at the same time they offer the availability to take the program in the class room as well. This allows students to feel comfortable with the option to complete their degree at whichever pace they want. Online classrooms offer a combination of different tools from video chats, traditional chat-rooms, forums and more. Professors have the option to put their lectures on podcasts and virtually never show up to class physically. Like anything else, there are some disadvantages. The relationships amongst student and teacher or student and student are often diminished. Would it be fair to say though that the convenience and effectiveness of the online option outweighs minimized personal relationships? That is up to the student and/or professor. However, there is no doubt that technology is changing and that it will be a continuing struggle to stay ahead of these technologies.
Future of Web 2.0
If there were a crystal ball to predict the future, life would not be what it is today. One cannot predict the exact future of Web 2.0 yet a forecast could be more plausible. Maybe the web will evolve into a 3-dimensional world. There are talks that the future web will be so interactive that people will be able to “walk” into online stores to try on clothes. Whatever the case may be, it is clearly evident that Web 2.0 has both advantages and disadvantages. Spanning across all sectors of the world from education to military, Web 2.0 has allowed society to become more knowledgeable and at the same time more diverse. As long as technology continues to change, similar to Moore’s Law, the web will inevitably see more changes. Life changes rapidly as does technology and it is imperative for all to understand that change. Web 2.0 has altered the way communication is conducted in many different ways. Web 2.0 can be lucrative to those who understand and implement along with it. Society should not fear Web 2.0 but rather embrace it.
Bibliography
[1] Antlfinger, Carrie. "Police Using Twitter to Get the Word Out." 13 Apr. 2009. Web. 18 Mar. 2010.
1. Television today has altered a great deal since its' beginning. From the black & white screen to the new liquid crystal colored plasma screens, television and advertisements have ultimately changed. I believe that professional production of TV shows and advertisements are what they are - professional. With that notion in mind, there has also been a switch from professional production to amateur user-generated content. Today, just about anyone can log onto a computer and post their content, whether it be written, audio, video and so on.
However, in my opinion, I feel the quality of professional production is not declining. It is that change that people want that make it seem that way. Just like the world of the Web, people wanted a more interactive web, hence Web 2.0. The norm to becoming a professional media producer would usually mean a college education and years of experience. Then, to actually produce the material and have it air, is a whole other ball game - price wise. A typical Superbowl commercial aired on television can cost up to $3million per 30 seconds. The professionally produced content is in a sense a cash cow to companies. They feel safe taking that route, as if they are not coloring out the lines. On the other hand, Web 2.0 offers the amateur user-generated content to boom. Amateur user-generated content is the incoming wave of what society wants. It makes the world of TV and advertisement more real and raw. The content is spontaneous and unique. The cost-effectiveness in no way compares to professionally produced material. They key difference to what makes amateur user-generated content so popular is the ability to give feedback. If people don’t like what they see- they will be notified. Blogs, chats and even the ability to comment [such as a YouTube comment] all give the viewer- power. Over time, amateur user-generated content will get better, much better. Society likes to be able to interact therefore, amateur user-generated content will continue to flourish.
