August 2007

So, what’s it all about? Authentically, Web 2.0 is a phrase given by O’Reilly Media, referring to the professed notion of second generation of Web based societies and hosted services such as folksonomies and social-networks which aim to allow interaction and sharing between like-minded groups of users across the web. Or at least that’s the theory. However, is this actually new technology? What was wrong with our old web, and how does this really work?

Technology infrastructure
Granted, many of the technology components of “Web 2.0″ have existed since the early days of the Web, however today we’ve put it all into practice; social networking, blogging, discussion groups and the like is become a hugely powerful medium and people are just starting to grasp how effective that can be. Moreover there is one major substance, which happens to be the foundation of this concept, and that is interaction. Interaction or networking simply means that you and I can download and upload various data in hope of enhancing our knowledge.

The online encyclopedia Wikipedia is a perfect example of a very large group of people in mutual cooperation who all share a common interest. Likewise the photo sharing services Flickr adopted by Yahoo in mid 2005 provides its users with an opportunity to express and share their creativity with like-minded individuals the world over. And besides these we mustn’t forget our plentiful virtual social communities.

Social networking websites
Leading the virtual social experience is, of course, MySpace followed by Facebook which boasts over thirty million active members as the fastest growing social networking website thus far. Facebook is totally free you simply create a profile, give them your email, make up a password, log in and start meeting people. Facebook lets you keep in touch with your friends, schoolmates and or relatives whom you may not otherwise see everyday. Basically users log on and connect with friends by writing a few lines about what they’re doing right now or later.

Likewise it’s an opportunity make mutual friends with one of your friend’s friends or join a group to discuss your views with those who share a similar interests. Most social networking websites feature a number of various ways for users to interact, such as chat, messaging, email, video, voice chat, file sharing, blogging, discussion groups, and this might sound a little clingy, even satellite tracking. Whether you are struggling with diabetes, trying to conceive, drowning in debt or fearful about the future? There’s a community for all of these and anything else that may go bump in your head.

From a designer’s perspective Facebook is the winner with its clean feel and streamline good looks, which corresponds with our Web 2.0 perception of style earlier mentioned (i.e. central layout, better allocation of text and brighter color surfaces readily attributed to Web 2.0 templates) as opposed to MySpace’s inexplicably gauche feel, making Facebook more accessible to people of all ages.

Security awareness
The biggest risk here is privacy and not in the way one might think but from what I like to call “over sharing”, some people simply share way more than they need to, too much information, they simply post things about themselves that they would never want to shout out from a street corner. While Facebook, unlike MySpace, does have the ability to limit the availability of your profile to only your friends and other people on your networks, it is still up to the user if he should decide to want to censor himself. Granted it isn’t easy for a whole generation of show-offs to remain in secret.

Not that there’s anything wrong with the whole idea of interacting and sharing in itself but, the reality is that most of these social-networking sites suffer from a lack of real community. Online communities are not communities in the real sense - they are a slightly more sinuous interpretation of the former. MySpace for example is a complete disgrace and nothing more than a narcissist reservoir where the socializing on offer is not only poor in quality but also impetuous and vain not to insinuate that Facebook is any better or anything, not by a long shot. Notwithstanding, in the real world people know that they will be held accountable for their behavior, in other words while we still have the freedom to exercise our first amendment rights we must do so with respect towards others and in the spirit of up-building our fellow neighbor and not just me, only me, always me and me, me, me, me.

Having said that, Web 2.0 is truly about bonding with the world today through a common base the Internet well as offering genuine solutions. And everyday, online communities, large and small, do just that. Ladies and gentlemen, there’s hope and there’s reason for hope.

About the author:
Dave Collado is the Senior Design Consultant at www.foamers.net who provides quality website templates customization, WEB 2.0 templates, Flash templates customization, CSS templates, web design tutorials, and many other web design and web hosting services. This article may be republished providing it remains fully intact.

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It thrills me to introduce to you an innovation in Web design with a new-fangled concept and approach towards Web design. You’ve guessed it right it is called Web 2.0 templates making Internet content handier, with the comfort of better design options. Whether you are the owner of a small or big enterprise, or simply learning We are certain you’ll love our Web 2.0 templates!

Undoubtedly, Web 2.0 is a well-regarded approach in the world of Web design today. The very objective of user friendliness with convenience is achieved with the help of several key design elements such as simplicity, central layout, legibility, and general presentation (i.e. better allocation and prioritization of text - bigger text), as well as stronger brighter color surfaces.

However this is not just about a better look, but it is also about a new technology that goes well beyond HTML, XML, CSS, and server side scripting. Included in Web 2.0 strategies for example are SOA architectures, more extensive use of well-organized Web services for application re-usability, mash-up technologies, and more. In addition some might even argue that while there may be a few viable reasons to call some Websites Web 2.0-styled, the esthetic characteristics of the website are simply irrelevant to that whole Web 2.0 variety. Or are they? Is there some style or features whereof it may be said, See this is Web 2.0?

The fact is that there really is a Web 2.0 design style. That is to say, indeed all Web 2.0 Websites possess a number of common design elements such as the already mentioned central layout, better allocation of text and brighter color surfaces readily attributed to Web 2.0 templates… Moreover it is irrefutable to want to have functionality working in tandem with great looks and intuitive design. Consequently our aim here focuses on Web 2.0 design first and as for the rest of Web 2.0-niness this is left up to the developer own vision of that.

Hence Web 2.0 as it pertains to our Web 2.0 templates is about the esthetic characteristics of the design. Granted maybe our Web 2.0 templates are not Web 2.0 in all aspects nevertheless; they still look great! And while design might not be the most important reason visitors end up book-marking your site, it is one of the key ways to keep them coming back again and again.

And so logically cense Web 2.0 technologies greatly differ from our old Web; the design has also been changed. Everything beginning with the background and ending with text fonts has been changed. From now on our templates are easier to use and customize. In addition to our Web 2.0 templates you may opt to purchase Web 2.0 template customization.

Our Web 2.0 template customization services includes the cost of the template a $62 value, customizing the site name, adding your logo, making sure all links are operable, a contact form page, and integrating customers content throughout 5 Web 2.0 optimized pages.

Moreover all of our latest Web 2.0 templates are W3C validated and thoroughly tested through alpha and beta testing, where beta testing refers to testing at the customer’s server, as it is the real filter through which the product passes for errors in a real time environment.

Here are some examples of our Web 2.0 family:

In the second part of this article, “What’s this about Web2.0 anyway?” we’ll help you arrive at a conceptual understanding of Web 2.0. You’ll also learn about 4 of the most popular Web 2.0 applications as we examined the useful, the hype and the disenchanted.

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