Vancouver 2.0
Rob recently arranged for us to participate in an article on Web 2.0 in Infamous Magazine by Andrew Rideout, online communications coordinator for Backbone Magazine. To read the article in it’s released form, I have created a .pdf of the article and put it online here. Otherwise, here are the questions that were posed to me and my answers (sorry, no links):
Can you think of some specific examples of 2.0-related companies in Vancouver that you would consider a success story, instead of merely a lot of hype?
Suprisingly, Vancouver has created a fairly strong Web 2.0 community, although it seems to exist in the background of the industry, being overshadowed by the likes of Seattle and, of course, the Silicon Valley. Even in Canada, IT news seems to be focussed on Toronto. However, there are some pretty respectable companies in the area. The first that would come to mind is Flikr, a company that had its early roots in Yaletown long before becoming one of the impact, Web 2.0 companies. Recently, Sxip, headed by Dick Hardt who cashed in on Web 1.0 with ActiveState, has gotten a lot of attention with the work they’re doing in the Identity 2.0 arena. With industry heavyweights starting to adopt the concept of OpenID, and some recently announced partnerships with companies like SalesForce and Google. Another company that seems to be on the brink of breaking out is Nitobi; the North Vancouver company claims to be the founder of Ajax in the Vancouver area, has produced some amazing widgets using the technology, and has good things in the works that I can’t really say much about. Arthur Griffiths and his Wavelit project is another one that might already be considered a success story.
How do you think Web 2.0 can empower the average Joe-Shmoe Canadian? The Web 2.0 trend provides the average Joe-Shmoe Canadian a larger voice and a means of expressing themselves to a worldwide audience. No longer can they be silenced by major corporations or the scale of the Internet; whether you are hiding away in the farthest corners of Nunavut or smack dab in the middle of Toronto, social media and the ability to easily create and distribute digital content has not only levelled the playing field, it has provided an outlet for those inspired to create. The Internet is a billion-person audience, and with the new standards, a single letter, audio file, or video can create an unimaginable following. As corporations start to adopt these types of communications more readily, the consumer will start to have more of a voice in the products available their features.
What do you think of the term Web 3.0?
Web 3.0 has already been batted around in some circles, but I think it lacks in originallity and punch, and doesn’t really fit with what the next wave will be. The buzzword ‘Web 2.0′ describes a new standard on the web, with websites really becoming Internet-based applications, but it also gives light to the decline of the web after the late-90’s/2000 crash that crippled the industry, almost like the second coming of the web. Many of the promises made in the initial Internet boom were unattainable; the technology, infrastructure, and equipment was inadequate, leaving the user frustrated and unfullfilled. Undoubtedly, there will be something that takes place after the Web 2.0 phase, but that phase will likely incorporate the Internet, your standard computer, and your handheld device together into one, which we are already starting to see with Apple’s iPhone and Microsoft’s Zune phone. I don’t really see that next step as Web 3.0, it’s bigger than that.
Do you remember what the internet was like before the web existed? Do you think Telnet, BBS’s, and MUD’s inspired Web 2.0 more than some people might think? Anyone who has been around the Internet since before the web will probably see a lot of similarities between the social media websites of Web 2.0, and the BBS’s that created their own sub-culture in the pre-web days. Sites like MySpace and YouTube are almost carbon-copies of the old Renegade BBS’s that I frequented back in the early 90’s, at least in principle. With increased bandwith and the proliferation of broadband connectivity, these sites merely provide a scaled-up version; messages, images, and applications are being shared, friends are being made, and users are establishing their online identities. This is nearly identical to the file sharing and messaging that many of did, only these users avoid the frustrations that phone lines and 2400 baud modems bring.
What up-and-coming web 2.0 company do you think we will be hearing a lot more from in the near future?
While thinking of a potential up-and-coming Web 2.0 company, I’m reminded of a quote from the movie Gladiator: The Mob is fickle, brother. He’ll be forgotten in a month. The Internet and its users are no different, and it makes it difficult to tell what companies may break out and become the next MySpace, Flickr, or YouTube. Rather than looking at a specific company, I prefer to look at a niche in the industry, and my money would be on mobile digital content. Companies that are able to, seamlessly, incorporate your online experience with your mobile/handheld device (which will ultimately hot-synch with your car and home and office PC’s) are going to be the companies that take the Internet to that next level. Tomorrow’s Internet will let you sit in your cabin on the Queen Charlotte Island’s with your cellphone and watch, in real time, your Great-grandmother open the present you ordered for her off Amazon for her 101st birthday celebration in Australia - and for you, it won’t even be her birthday until tomorrow.
As for me:
Jason - BSc. (Biology, Chemistry) - UCFV ‘04
I got my first computer in 1984, first used the Internet in 1993 or so, and had my cellphone in 1997. I’ve grown up embracing technology. I’ve worked for a variety of different IT companies for the last 8 years, including an Internet Service Provider (ISP), application service provider (ASP), and Managed Services Provider (MSP). I’ve had a variety of roles with these companies, and they were all in different stages, from start-up to very well established. I am the primary writer for the Internet and Internet technologies blog, JayAndSilentRob.com, and am a partner in a variety of different Internet properties. As a hobby, I dabble in development, including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Flash, and Ajax.