Web Evolution

 

The web was not invented overnight in a geeky teenager’s bedroom; like most things, it has evolved from what used to be an incredibly rudimental, linked system. This week we’re focusing on the three main stages that the internet has undergone to reach where we are at today.

web 1.0:

This pre- 1999 form of the internet was very static – users were limited in what it could actually be used for. The majority of its content was read only and not interactive. As a result is was not at all user friendly. Pictures were rare and took a long time to download – Instagram users may have had a mental breakdown! Socially, this form of the internet had little impact and was considered insignificant to the majority of the population.

Web 2.0:

This version allowed users to upload their own pictures and text, allowing people to communicate and be linked to one another via social media, email etc. More interactive and functional – shopping baskets were introduced to let people purchase products. As a result, online retailing increased exponentially! Overall, the biggest impact this development in internet technology caused was encouraging collaboration, participation and information sharing between users.

Web 3.0:

Web 3.0 saw the birth of machine to machine compatibility- devices began to intelligently communicate with one another. It could now predict users tastes based on their search habits, and uses this to make accurate predictions and recommendations- Interpreting information into useful practical outcomes. Siri could be an example of this! It’s a semantic web, meaning connections are made between both machines and people.

If you’d like to read more about this topic, the following links will give you some more to get your teeth stuck into:

Info on Web 1.0, 2 and 3

Even more of the good stuff