Ajax Clarified

Ajax does not equal Web 2.0 but since they are mentioned so often in the same breath it is worth defining what Ajax is and is not.

From the Mozilla Developer Center:

Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX) is not a technology in itself, but is a term that describes a "new" approach to using a number of existing technologies together, including: HTML or XHTML, Cascading Style Sheets, JavaScript, The Document Object Model, XML, XSLT, and the XMLHttpRequest object. When these technologies are combined in the AJAX model, web applications are able to make quick, incremental updates to the user interface without reloading the entire browser page. This makes the application faster and more responsive to user actions.

I happen to like Ajax a lot but utilizing the Ajax itself does not make a site Web 2.0. Got it?

tags:web 2.0 web2.0 web-20 Social technology

Why have a blog about Web 2.0?

Under my definition of the term, "Web 2.0" is a set of technologies and best practices that is helping define the future of web design. It is more open, easy-to-use and powerful than "Web 1.0" and has become the rallying cry of a new generation of Internet start-ups. In my professional life I spend most of my day looking at Web 2.0 companies and will use this blog to chronicle and share my oberservations.

"(T)he technologies of the modern Web are indeed reshaping our society, particularly of the younger generations that spend so much of their time there." (Source)

I am certainly not the only person writing about this topic and as I come across blogs that I respect I will cite them as well as add them to my blog roll.

Wesley Hein/Enigma 2

tags:web 2.0 web2.0 web-20 Social technology