It's kind of ironic to see what has emerged after ISWC
2006 and the Web 2.0 Summit. From my vantage point, it
appears as though the Web 2.0 event
inadvertently (albeit beneficially) left its attendees looking for
the next big thing re. the Web Innovation Continuum as exemplified
by the "Web 3.0" meme from the New York Times
(NYT) which triggered the current "Web 2.0 vs Web 3.0
Brouhaha".
Amongst the numerous comments about this subject, I felt most
compelled to respond to the commentary from Tim O'Reilly (based on
his proximity to Web 2.0 etc..) in relation to his view that the
NYT's Web 3.0 = Collective Intelligence Harnessing aspect of his
Web 2.0 meme.
My response is dumped semi-verbatim below:
Tim,
A few things:
- We are in an innovation continuum
- The Web as a medium of innovation will evolve forever
- Different commentators have different views about monikers
associated with these innovations
- To say Web 3.0 (aka the Data Web or Semantic Web - Layer 1) is what Web 2.0's
collective intelligence is all about is a little inaccurate (IMHO);
Web 2.0 doesn't provide "Open Data Access"
- Web 2.0 is a "Web of Services" primarily, a dimension of "Web
Interaction" defined by interaction with Services
- Web 3.0 ("Data Web" or "Web of Databases" or "Semantic Web - Layer
1") is a Web dimension that provides "Open Data Access" that will
be exemplified by the transition from "Mash-ups" (brute force data
joining) to "Mesh-ups" (natural data joining)
The original "Web of Hypertext" or "Interactive Web", the
current "Web of Services", and the emerging "Data Web" or "Web of
Databases" collectively provide dimensions of interaction in the
innovation continuum called the Web.
There are many more dimensions to come. Monikers come and go,
but the retrospective "Long Shadow" of Innovation is ultimately
timeless.
"Mutual Inclusivity" is a critical requirement for truly
perceiving these "Web Interaction Dimensions"
("Participation" if I recall). "Mutual Exclusivity" on the other
hand, simpy leads to obscuring reality with Versionitis as
exemplified by the ongoing: Web 1.0 vs 2.0 vs 3.0 debates.
BTW - I enjoyed reading Nick Carr's take on the Web 3.0 meme,
especially his "tongue in cheek" power-grab for the rights to all
"Web 3.0" Conferences etc. :-)