web 2.0 ftw

Yay for my laptop getting a virus. I wonder if that's Web 2.0's fault.

Web 2.0, I think, is so interesting. It is also extremely relevant when I think about most of the websites I use/are familiar with today in particular. This week's topic made a lot of sense, and probably because of its epic relevance.

An interesting point made was when Michael mentioned how Wikipedia, in a sense, is the most accurate encyclopaedia out there. And this is very true. When you think about it, the people who collaborate your ordinary encyclopaedia are a very narrow group of people. You do not have that sheer range or diverse group of people, who all hold specific knowledge about very specific things; instead you have a group of academics with money to make physical copies of their works. You may have a substantially large group of academics, but you don't have the entire world like Wikipedia does.

This reminds me of things we had to consider in relation to scientific collaboration when I did chemistry at high school. We had to explore the benefits of collaboration - I had the points memorised in my head for my NSW HSC, it would be a serious 'fml' moment if I could still remember them. And I think it is very significant in this context.

Web 2.0 - a collaboration. It is, essentially, a popularity contest, when you think about it. Such as the page ranking system. Or the Touching the Void versus Into Thin Air debacle. People of all kinds with all different tastes and values and cultures and morals are deciding the future of the internet. They are also deciding the survival of websites, because without its users Facebook wouldn't exist. Same going for eBay, craigslist, and so on. These websites exist because of the connectivity they provide between users.

"The more people that use a service, the more useful and valuable that service becomes." This is, obviously, very true for the websites I just mentioned; but it is also true of communities and the like I am a part of on the internet. Take my membership on a creative writing community website, for example. It is a place where you as a user benefit from being able to post your pieces of work and get feedback. And, as a user, you can also browse the different genres available if you feel like a good read. Even hot slash. (Isn't that nice?) The more users there are, the more stories there are to choose from, with the most ridiculous and obscure fanfiction now available. The website simply serves as a place for people to congregate and upload stories.

So what can I say? Web 2.0 ftw!!!!!!!!1111~!!~!