The Changing World of The World Wide Web

The Web has gone through two major transitions since its conception. And it has grown faster than almost anything on earth. It has made significant advancements in a short amount of time in terms of history. Technology is now being shaped by the Internet and Internet connectivity. It is commonplace to be able to surf the Web on your phone or buy an app from the Apple store in your car. The Internet has become a staple in human life.

The Advancement of the Web

The emergence of Web 2.0 took the iIternet by storm. It was like nothing anyone had ever seen before; it allowed people to do things that weren’t even thought of when Web 1.0 rolled out. I think the main objective of Web 2.0 was to get people to not only visit web pages, but revisit them multiple times in the future. Web 2.0 is described as the participatory web. This means that the user can interact with it as opposed to Web 1.0 where it was purely for reading consumption. With Web 2.0 people can write to web pages, sharing content like photos and video, review things like movies and books as well as comment on news threads. Web 3.0 is characterized by connecting the whole thing and making it more open, and in a way, smarter. Web 3.0 is often referred to as the semantic web.

I think Web 2.0 provided a lot more for users that Web 1.0 simply couldn’t even attempt to. It provided things like bookmarking, Wiki pages and RSS. Things like bookmarking and Wiki seem to be so simple nowadays that we take them for granted. But at one time these tools were groundbreaking. For example, in Web 1.0 days if you found an apple pie recipe that you loved, you would get out your favorite clicky pen and write it on a piece of paper, and then keep it somewhere where you know it wouldn’t go missing. But with the introduction of Web 2.0, keeping track of things via bookmarks made life so much easier. Now, it’s Web 2.0 and you again find a great apple pie recipe. Instead of getting that pen and paper, you can save that web page in your own private library on your computer which basically has infinite space. That recipe, along with many others on that website are at your fingertips whenever you desire. Simple things like this have made using the web an essential part of our lives. I think Web 2.0 has provided many positive things that we take advantage of on a daily basis. However, things like the amateurization of the Web is very negative. Now, anyone can post something to the Internet even if it is not true. This has been an enormous problem in this country’s latest presidential election.

I think Web 3.0 is taking us into an even more advanced, facilitating time period in terms of the Internet. It is being driven forward by technological changes within the structure of the Internet. Web 3.0 is described as the semantic web and that is all about the collection of data. The biggest advantage that Web 3.0 has given us is Google. Google allows us to find virtually any information that we want. The pros and cons of Web 3.0 are expansive.

What Stage of the Web Are We In Now?

Are we really in Web 3.0 already? Or are we, as a society, still in transition from Web 2.0 to Web 3.0? This question is a subject of debate among experts. It is accepted that it took somewhere around 10 years to fully transition from Web 1.0 to 2.0. By using that logic, we would have broken into the Web 3.0 stage in 2015. So it would be impossible to go from a 10 year transition to a 2 year transition. The line is blurred as to whether or not we actually broke that threshold. Web 3.0 has a heavy influence on connecting the world around us. There is no doubt that the internet is connected, but is our life outside of the Internet fully connected? Evidence suggests that we are still in a state of transition with that. For instance, you can now have a refrigerator that will live stream a video of the inside of the fridge to show you what you do and do not have at your house while you are at the grocery store. This kind of thing is the result of things being connected to wireless networks, which is the Internet. This is an example of Web 3.0 rearing its head, but not being fully assimilated. Not everybody has that kind of refrigerator, but they do exist. We can only say that we have completely graduated to Web 3.0 when everybody in your neighborhood has a fridge with a camera in it. When that kind of technology becomes commonplace, then we can say that Web 3.0 is completely born. Web 3.0 can also be described as a fundamental change in the way we use the web.

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Each Web evolution is marked by distinct characteristics. Web 1.0 is characterized by a static environment. It was only one way communication. The information was coming from the page to the reader only, the reader could not interact with the page. The page itself would also never change, it didn’t have other things to click on that would take you to a new page environment. What you saw was what you got. A lot of companies would have Web pages so people could read about the company and what it did or what it offered, and that was the only objective.

Web 2.0 was a big jump from Web 1.0. The biggest change was the fact that people could now interact with the Web. It marked the transition from a static environment, to interactive web pages. It also created amateurization among the Web. Meaning that anybody can put information on the internet regardless of it being true or false. This is still a big issue today. Social networking also became a thing in Web 2.0, Facebook, Twitter and Myspace were new things.

Web 3.0 is all about building upon what Web 2.0 started. It wants to make in the Internet more connected and efficient. It is characterized by technological changes. For example, Google and other search engines are more powerful than ever. And the Internet now collects data on its users to create a more streamlined experience. You can search for a used car on eBay and then go on Google, and get a sidebar ad for that specific kind of car; all because the computer now knows what you have been looking for.

It is ultimately up to the individual about whether or not the internet and its various stages has made either a positive or negative impact on life. Whether or not people like the Internet and social media, they cannot deny that it is here to stay; and it will only get bigger and play a more important role in everyday life at home, work, and leisure.