What animal is web 2.0?

Web 2.0 still creates a buzz as noone has been able to come up with a standard definition about it. O'Reilly has delved into the web 2.0 characteristics, however, a uniform one-line definition does not exist.

That is frustrating given the fact the core principles of web 2.0 functionality have been systematically or not so systematically summed up by various authors.

According to Prashant Sharma, web 2.0 entails user-centered design, crowd-sourcing, web as a platform, collaboration, power decentralization, dynamic content, SaaS."A web design which is created in a way that it fulfills every possible need of the end user and empowers the user to perform certain customizations within the design." Crowd -sourcing is important as every user is a contributor. Furthermore, that brings to the front the notion of the long tail distribution as millions of small contributors create unique content which adds up to a huge volume.

Web 2.0 as a collaborative space is an overarching principle. The constant interaction users create through editing content (in blogging, wikis, etc) tremendously improves the quality of content and creates an idea of dynamism.

Democratization of content is another revolutionary principle of web 2.0. There is no administrator to 'regulate' your web 2.0 experience. You define the boundaries of your content!....