From Web2.0 to Web2.U

When a term lacks a widely accepted definition, as does ‘Web 2.0′, it generally means that the term lacks an objective foundation. The term was not coined to name a clearly envisioned idea. As a result, one finds multiple definitions for the term, none of which make complete sense. ‘Web 2.0′ is defined in the Wikipedia as “…a term often applied to a perceived ongoing transition of the World Wide Web from a collection of websites to a full-fledged computing platform serving web applications to end users.” Tim O’Reilly heads up the firm credited with coining the term. He says that amongst other things, Web 2.0 refers to the idea of collective intelligence and he points to the Wikipedia is an example. The difference between his definition and the Wikipedia’s is telling.

If given the various definitions ascribed to a term, one cannot derive a fundamental idea to which all the definitions relate, then the term lacks an essential meaning. Mr. O’Reilly admits that some people find the term ‘Web 2.0′ to be nothing but a meaningless marketing buzzword. The truth however is that in coining the term, the people at O’Reilly’s firm did have something in mind. The problem isn’t a complete lack of vision, but rather a lack of clarity. Much like a shadow conveys information regarding its source object, what O’Reilly and others perceived wasn’t the essential idea underlying what we see happening on the web. Instead, they saw the manifestations of that idea in the various trends in web development. Given that most people fail to notice even this, O’Reilly and his colleagues deserve the respect and attention they have received. At the same time, the term ‘Web 2.0′ does not apply to the idea that underlies what we see happening in web development today.

As I wrote in “Ajax & Ruby-on-Rails”, the essential idea underlying application development is the identification of the User as an individual. Applications, both web-based and desktop are moving towards a model that accounts for the person. Such a model is general in nature and will enable computing applications that are more than just Web 2.0. I call it Web 2.U. By acknowledging the person, the User, Web 2.U is able to cooperate with the User in a way that is personalized, cooperating with and pointing them to information. Using a capital ‘U’ in ‘Web 2.U’ is an acknowledgement that the User is unique and that the concept of personal identity is ubiquitous.

Web2.U….the web is all about U.