Recently I wrote about my last 10 years online. When I wrote that article I felt that, in comparison with those first 5-6 years (’95 – 2001), nothing ‘radical’ or really ‘new’ was going on. Well, I need to revise my opinion because I completely left something out: Web 2.0. I guess it completely skipped my mind because a lot of what is hyped to be “Web 2.0” has been around in some way or form, but was pretty dormant, so to speak. But with something like AJAX popping up all around us, it seems that the Web is actually ready to start transforming into version 2.0. Now, for those not so tech-savvy, Web 2.0 promises a more ineractive experience for users. I would compare it to using a regular application like, for instance Microsoft Word, but then through the use of your Webbrowser.
There are a few good showcases that let us see what things are going to come our way. Interactive startpages like Netvibes, ProtoPage show us things like the ability to drag elements around a page, nice interfaces for RSS feeds, personal bookmarks etc.. Taking it a step further is Goowy, that presents us with a desktop interface (sort of a Mac OS X clone) and adds things like email and a personal agenda.
These examples are all possible because of the use of AJAX. And I like to state here that it is my opinion that AJAX is going to be the major improvement that will enable the so-called Web 2.0 over the next years. Sure, it is complex and there is a steep learning curve for programmers that want to use it, but it gives so many opportunities. in fact I think that the fact that it makes it possible to use complex interfaces that basically are the equivalent of a regular desktop application will mark yet another breakthrough of the browser in business environments.
Take a look at the Zimbra demo and you’ll see what I mean. To use these kind of applications you only need a browser and be online. No need to install anything. And you do not have to worry about upgrading or anything like that: the latest version is always on the server! In fact the whole idea comes very close to the thin client or “netcomputer” that people like Larry Elison from Oracle have been talking about some 10 years ago.
It’s things like this that are also a huge threat to companies like Microsoft! They depend on building software that is installed and used on your computer. But you can have a feature rich wordprocessor that runs from your browser, without installing any software! Just take a look at Writely and you’ll see what I mean!
In fact, my old employer (Netcast, Lost Boys) started a company in 2001 that has been working on a complete online bookkeeping software suite that runs from your browser (take a look at it: Reeleezee, and is based on the Microsoft .NET framework. They even are mentioned on the Microsoft website with this article.
So my take on this: there is a silent revolution going on when it comes to the web. And yes, it looks a lot like the much talked about Web 2.0!