Maryrose Lyons blogging since 2003...

Web 2.0

April 27, 2006 at 11:46 am

Web 2.0 is a term used to refer to the second phase of architecture and application development for the World Wide Web. Just as we look back and laugh at the tackiness of websites from the mid-1990’s, we will soon be looking back at websites from now and thinking the same thing. [If you are the owner of a Brightspark website, I know that is hard to believe, but please read on..]

First - The Technical Bit..

Web 2.0 is causing quite a buzz technically because its applications use a combination of development languages that allow so much more to be achieved on web pages. In particular, the combination of Ruby on Rails and AJAX allows for the creation of much more intuitive web pages. The majority of ecommerce sites work like this - view products, click to go to product page, click to view shopping cart, click to go to checkout, click to confirm sale, etc. etc.

Take a look at these sites for a glimpse of the future of websites. Be warned - the future is now. If you are thinking of developing a site with ecommerce capability, you’d be much better off developing a Web 2.0 site that first of the next generation, rather one that’s last of the first generation!

• https://www.paguna.com/?l=en - cool hotel booking site. Start off by selecting a city in the top left hand corner, then enjoy the ride! See the way the page updates itself quickly - that’s AJAX!
• http://www.kayak.com - notice how it completes the form with suggested answers when you input your search. See how it updates itself as it searches. When the search is complete, use the toggles on the bottom left to adjust search results based on price or date. This is a good example of how all travel sites will be real soon.
• www.everythingcute.com - notice the locked in shopping cart on top right of every page. When an item is selected, the basket is immediately updated, greatly facilitating ‘impulse buying’. At the checkout, it’s easy to add ‘related purchases’ so that if an item is selected, a related item from the database is offered.

And Now The Philosophy…

Web 2.0 is not just being driven by the techies. A new philosophy for websites has evolved from the current one-way “we publish the content” system to one of “the site is only as good as the people who come to it”. What this means is that Web 2.0 sites give their visitors more control - allowing them to upload their pictures, videos, blogs, podcasts, etc.

This approach of treating users as co-developers has fuelled the meteoric rise of sites such as MySpace (signing up 150,000 new users per day, with 56 million members globally! Read more…) , Bebo (recruiting more than 6,000 Irish users a day, and with more than 22 million members globally Read more…) , Flickr, and my own favourite 43 Things.

So, you can see how Web 2.0 is affecting ecommerce and social networking sites above. You might be thinking that this is all very well but it’s not relevant for your business, but that’s where we’d like to plant the seed in your head. We’ll be writing a lot more about Web 2.0 in the coming months. In fact, we’re attending the Reboot Conference in Copenhagen in June to learn more about the cutting edge of where things are going. We’ve already got exclusive arrangements in place with leading Ruby on Rails/AJAX developers, so your Web 2.0 site could be closer than you think…

Posted in Uncategorized |

Web 2.0

April 27, 2006 at 11:46 am

Web 2.0 is a term used to refer to the second phase of architecture and application development for the World Wide Web. Just as we look back and laugh at the tackiness of websites from the mid-1990’s, we will soon be looking back at websites from now and thinking the same thing. [If you are the owner of a Brightspark website, I know that is hard to believe, but please read on..]

First - The Technical Bit..

Web 2.0 is causing quite a buzz technically because its applications use a combination of development languages that allow so much more to be achieved on web pages. In particular, the combination of Ruby on Rails and AJAX allows for the creation of much more intuitive web pages. The majority of ecommerce sites work like this - view products, click to go to product page, click to view shopping cart, click to go to checkout, click to confirm sale, etc. etc.

Take a look at these sites for a glimpse of the future of websites. Be warned - the future is now. If you are thinking of developing a site with ecommerce capability, you’d be much better off developing a Web 2.0 site that first of the next generation, rather one that’s last of the first generation!

• https://www.paguna.com/?l=en - cool hotel booking site. Start off by selecting a city in the top left hand corner, then enjoy the ride! See the way the page updates itself quickly - that’s AJAX!
• http://www.kayak.com - notice how it completes the form with suggested answers when you input your search. See how it updates itself as it searches. When the search is complete, use the toggles on the bottom left to adjust search results based on price or date. This is a good example of how all travel sites will be real soon.
• www.everythingcute.com - notice the locked in shopping cart on top right of every page. When an item is selected, the basket is immediately updated, greatly facilitating ‘impulse buying’. At the checkout, it’s easy to add ‘related purchases’ so that if an item is selected, a related item from the database is offered.

And Now The Philosophy…

Web 2.0 is not just being driven by the techies. A new philosophy for websites has evolved from the current one-way “we publish the content” system to one of “the site is only as good as the people who come to it”. What this means is that Web 2.0 sites give their visitors more control - allowing them to upload their pictures, videos, blogs, podcasts, etc.

This approach of treating users as co-developers has fuelled the meteoric rise of sites such as MySpace (signing up 150,000 new users per day, with 56 million members globally! Read more…) , Bebo (recruiting more than 6,000 Irish users a day, and with more than 22 million members globally Read more…) , Flickr, and my own favourite 43 Things.

So, you can see how Web 2.0 is affecting ecommerce and social networking sites above. You might be thinking that this is all very well but it’s not relevant for your business, but that’s where we’d like to plant the seed in your head. We’ll be writing a lot more about Web 2.0 in the coming months. In fact, we’re attending the Reboot Conference in Copenhagen in June to learn more about the cutting edge of where things are going. We’ve already got exclusive arrangements in place with leading Ruby on Rails/AJAX developers, so your Web 2.0 site could be closer than you think…

Posted in Uncategorized |

Web 2.0

April 27, 2006 at 11:46 am

Web 2.0 is a term used to refer to the second phase of architecture and application development for the World Wide Web. Just as we look back and laugh at the tackiness of websites from the mid-1990’s, we will soon be looking back at websites from now and thinking the same thing. [If you are the owner of a Brightspark website, I know that is hard to believe, but please read on..]

First - The Technical Bit..

Web 2.0 is causing quite a buzz technically because its applications use a combination of development languages that allow so much more to be achieved on web pages. In particular, the combination of Ruby on Rails and AJAX allows for the creation of much more intuitive web pages. The majority of ecommerce sites work like this - view products, click to go to product page, click to view shopping cart, click to go to checkout, click to confirm sale, etc. etc.

Take a look at these sites for a glimpse of the future of websites. Be warned - the future is now. If you are thinking of developing a site with ecommerce capability, you’d be much better off developing a Web 2.0 site that first of the next generation, rather one that’s last of the first generation!

• https://www.paguna.com/?l=en - cool hotel booking site. Start off by selecting a city in the top left hand corner, then enjoy the ride! See the way the page updates itself quickly - that’s AJAX!
• http://www.kayak.com - notice how it completes the form with suggested answers when you input your search. See how it updates itself as it searches. When the search is complete, use the toggles on the bottom left to adjust search results based on price or date. This is a good example of how all travel sites will be real soon.
• www.everythingcute.com - notice the locked in shopping cart on top right of every page. When an item is selected, the basket is immediately updated, greatly facilitating ‘impulse buying’. At the checkout, it’s easy to add ‘related purchases’ so that if an item is selected, a related item from the database is offered.

And Now The Philosophy…

Web 2.0 is not just being driven by the techies. A new philosophy for websites has evolved from the current one-way “we publish the content” system to one of “the site is only as good as the people who come to it”. What this means is that Web 2.0 sites give their visitors more control - allowing them to upload their pictures, videos, blogs, podcasts, etc.

This approach of treating users as co-developers has fuelled the meteoric rise of sites such as MySpace (signing up 150,000 new users per day, with 56 million members globally! Read more…) , Bebo (recruiting more than 6,000 Irish users a day, and with more than 22 million members globally Read more…) , Flickr, and my own favourite 43 Things.

So, you can see how Web 2.0 is affecting ecommerce and social networking sites above. You might be thinking that this is all very well but it’s not relevant for your business, but that’s where we’d like to plant the seed in your head. We’ll be writing a lot more about Web 2.0 in the coming months. In fact, we’re attending the Reboot Conference in Copenhagen in June to learn more about the cutting edge of where things are going. We’ve already got exclusive arrangements in place with leading Ruby on Rails/AJAX developers, so your Web 2.0 site could be closer than you think…

Posted in Uncategorized |

Web 2.0

April 27, 2006 at 11:46 am

Web 2.0 is a term used to refer to the second phase of architecture and application development for the World Wide Web. Just as we look back and laugh at the tackiness of websites from the mid-1990’s, we will soon be looking back at websites from now and thinking the same thing. [If you are the owner of a Brightspark website, I know that is hard to believe, but please read on..]

First - The Technical Bit..

Web 2.0 is causing quite a buzz technically because its applications use a combination of development languages that allow so much more to be achieved on web pages. In particular, the combination of Ruby on Rails and AJAX allows for the creation of much more intuitive web pages. The majority of ecommerce sites work like this - view products, click to go to product page, click to view shopping cart, click to go to checkout, click to confirm sale, etc. etc.

Take a look at these sites for a glimpse of the future of websites. Be warned - the future is now. If you are thinking of developing a site with ecommerce capability, you’d be much better off developing a Web 2.0 site that first of the next generation, rather one that’s last of the first generation!

• https://www.paguna.com/?l=en - cool hotel booking site. Start off by selecting a city in the top left hand corner, then enjoy the ride! See the way the page updates itself quickly - that’s AJAX!
• http://www.kayak.com - notice how it completes the form with suggested answers when you input your search. See how it updates itself as it searches. When the search is complete, use the toggles on the bottom left to adjust search results based on price or date. This is a good example of how all travel sites will be real soon.
• www.everythingcute.com - notice the locked in shopping cart on top right of every page. When an item is selected, the basket is immediately updated, greatly facilitating ‘impulse buying’. At the checkout, it’s easy to add ‘related purchases’ so that if an item is selected, a related item from the database is offered.

And Now The Philosophy…

Web 2.0 is not just being driven by the techies. A new philosophy for websites has evolved from the current one-way “we publish the content” system to one of “the site is only as good as the people who come to it”. What this means is that Web 2.0 sites give their visitors more control - allowing them to upload their pictures, videos, blogs, podcasts, etc.

This approach of treating users as co-developers has fuelled the meteoric rise of sites such as MySpace (signing up 150,000 new users per day, with 56 million members globally! Read more…) , Bebo (recruiting more than 6,000 Irish users a day, and with more than 22 million members globally Read more…) , Flickr, and my own favourite 43 Things.

So, you can see how Web 2.0 is affecting ecommerce and social networking sites above. You might be thinking that this is all very well but it’s not relevant for your business, but that’s where we’d like to plant the seed in your head. We’ll be writing a lot more about Web 2.0 in the coming months. In fact, we’re attending the Reboot Conference in Copenhagen in June to learn more about the cutting edge of where things are going. We’ve already got exclusive arrangements in place with leading Ruby on Rails/AJAX developers, so your Web 2.0 site could be closer than you think…

Posted in Uncategorized |

Web 2.0

April 27, 2006 at 11:46 am

Web 2.0 is a term used to refer to the second phase of architecture and application development for the World Wide Web. Just as we look back and laugh at the tackiness of websites from the mid-1990’s, we will soon be looking back at websites from now and thinking the same thing. [If you are the owner of a Brightspark website, I know that is hard to believe, but please read on..]

First - The Technical Bit..

Web 2.0 is causing quite a buzz technically because its applications use a combination of development languages that allow so much more to be achieved on web pages. In particular, the combination of Ruby on Rails and AJAX allows for the creation of much more intuitive web pages. The majority of ecommerce sites work like this - view products, click to go to product page, click to view shopping cart, click to go to checkout, click to confirm sale, etc. etc.

Take a look at these sites for a glimpse of the future of websites. Be warned - the future is now. If you are thinking of developing a site with ecommerce capability, you’d be much better off developing a Web 2.0 site that first of the next generation, rather one that’s last of the first generation!

• https://www.paguna.com/?l=en - cool hotel booking site. Start off by selecting a city in the top left hand corner, then enjoy the ride! See the way the page updates itself quickly - that’s AJAX!
• http://www.kayak.com - notice how it completes the form with suggested answers when you input your search. See how it updates itself as it searches. When the search is complete, use the toggles on the bottom left to adjust search results based on price or date. This is a good example of how all travel sites will be real soon.
• www.everythingcute.com - notice the locked in shopping cart on top right of every page. When an item is selected, the basket is immediately updated, greatly facilitating ‘impulse buying’. At the checkout, it’s easy to add ‘related purchases’ so that if an item is selected, a related item from the database is offered.

And Now The Philosophy…

Web 2.0 is not just being driven by the techies. A new philosophy for websites has evolved from the current one-way “we publish the content” system to one of “the site is only as good as the people who come to it”. What this means is that Web 2.0 sites give their visitors more control - allowing them to upload their pictures, videos, blogs, podcasts, etc.

This approach of treating users as co-developers has fuelled the meteoric rise of sites such as MySpace (signing up 150,000 new users per day, with 56 million members globally! Read more…) , Bebo (recruiting more than 6,000 Irish users a day, and with more than 22 million members globally Read more…) , Flickr, and my own favourite 43 Things.

So, you can see how Web 2.0 is affecting ecommerce and social networking sites above. You might be thinking that this is all very well but it’s not relevant for your business, but that’s where we’d like to plant the seed in your head. We’ll be writing a lot more about Web 2.0 in the coming months. In fact, we’re attending the Reboot Conference in Copenhagen in June to learn more about the cutting edge of where things are going. We’ve already got exclusive arrangements in place with leading Ruby on Rails/AJAX developers, so your Web 2.0 site could be closer than you think…

Posted in Uncategorized |