Lightweight Models & Cost-Effective Scalability – Digg

In the past, most of the business companies were using web 1.0 with the idea of “Get Big Fast” that was not that effective, well it was the opposite that makes some business companies loss their business in the long term. However, businesses start using Web 2.0 feature, which was an excellent step to be successful. As we all know that Web 2.0 provides and offers a lot of great features that gives the opportunity to people and business to do more for less, and that is what they called “Lightweight Models and Cost Effective Scalability”. It means that people can start their business as well as increasing their budget without the needs of applying the “Get Big Fast” theory. Also, it means that there is no need to have a lot of employers to be successful and to get that business to be recognized and famous.

The best example that I can write about is Digg. Digg is a place where people can share and discover content from anywhere on the web such as news form different websites and blogs. It provides a large number of content from many different categories that could get people attention. Also, it is another way that people can socialize as well as making new friends.

The start of Digg was in 2004, with $2000 and $99 per month for single hosted server. After two years, Digg become bigger in a remarkable way, they were having 90 servers and over 100 million page views by the users. Also, there were 15 people working for Digg (at the moment there are more than 70 employers), which make the point of in Web 2.0 the number people working in the website does not matter comparing with the quality and creative idea of the website. In 2006, Digg announced that the have more than 500.000 users visited Digg everyday. Digg never spend any money on advertising for the reason that in 2008 Digg received $28 million form investors such as Highland Capital Partners.

A similar web 2.0 application that could be compared with Digg is Wikipedia, for the reason that it start with the same way and methods that Digg start off with.

So, what do you think is these days’ websites need to be famous such as Digg and Wikipedia?

Leveraging The Long Tail

As it is obvious that people are using the Internet for almost everything, searching, socialising, downloading, sharing and buying and selling. Online shopping is one of the factors that make the Internet important to the people for the reason that the more options that they find as well as different prices of the same products that they looking for.

According to Chris Anderson, the long tail is a term that is used in statistics to explain a curve that continuing above zero for a long time. In other words, it is mean that if you have a business and one of your products keep selling 400 items per month and for the next months the product goes down to 30 items per month, which result to the products it will take long time to reach zero sell. The long tail theory assist small companies to start a good business through selling their product online because of it dose not requires a shop to start with. Also, it is the easiest method to expand the person small business to become an international business for the reason that time is not an issue. It does not matter how long it takes sell just as long as it sells. The cost does not change based on time and the storage is minimal.

My example of the leveraging the long tail is TechBuy. TechBuys is an online shop for computer hardware, printers and accessories.  It provides to the customers a different range of products of different brands that relate to computers. One of the good features of TechBuy is the simplicity of searching as well as the great range of options that users can use such as computer hardware, CPUs, Cables, etc. Also, since there are different uses of computers such as digital designing, programming and gaming user can find a different range of computers that have specific feature for that use with many different options and prices. Also, users cannot only buy already made computers; they also can customize their computers to meet their needs. Also, TechBuy is a global online computer shop that they can send their products to the most countries in the world.

So, what strategy you think online shops need to have or improve?

Perpetual Beta

Nowadays, the Internet becomes something important in our life. The Internet is significantly improving that makes users cannot live without it. Software applications are more likely like service, before creating and introducing new web 2.0 applications they released a “BETA” for several reasons, which are:

1-    Give the users the opportunity to test the application.

2-    Knowing how users interact with the application.

3-    Finding any mistakes needs to be fixed.

4-    Adding new features to application.

The main reason of releasing a beta is to see how the users use the application and making sure that the application will meet its purpose with users. Also, it is a good step from developers to make users participating on their Web 2.0 application.

For today topic I will talk about Google Wave application that was beat and now it is a great Web 2.0 application.

In September 2009 Google released Google Wave beta to 100.000 users that they allowed to invite additional users. They gave users the opportunity to use the application and express the features that it gives as well as how it is work.

However, on May 19, 2010 Google released Google Wave to the public. Google Wave is a Web 2.0 application for real-time communication and collaboration. It gives the users the ability to hare videos, work documents, presentation and photo. Also, users can discuss their work either if it is business or University work through the chat feature that Google Wave provides.

Unfortunately Google Wave did not stay long. In August 2010 Google announced that there are no plan to continuing support Google Wave “we are not continuing active development of Google Wave as a stand-alone product”. Google wave is still working but it will not have Google support.

Google Wave is one of the best Web 2.0 applications I use in my University studies. It was a bad news for me when I heard that they are going to stop supporting one of the best Web 2.0 application, but it still working fine with no support.

This week Question will be, Do you think it was a good step from Google to stop supporting Google Wave?

Software Above The Level Of a Single Device

Since technology is remarkably growing  in many different aspects, the way people want to use it is incredibly increasing. Using social websites and the Internet in general becomes a MUST to most of people, as well as businesses are using the internet for advertising and selling their products more than the old methods such as advertising  through magazines, TV’s or Newspapers. These days’ mobile phones are offering a lot of features that makes browsing the Internet easy and active. Also, many Web 2.0 applications are moving to expand their Web 2.0 application from using it through desktop to any device that can be connected to the Internet. In this week blog, I will talk about  my favorite Web 2.0 application that I use in both Desktop and mobile phone.

One of my best examples of web 2.0 applications that are Software above the level of a single device is Dropbox. Dropbox is the Web 2.0 application that user can store, sync, and, share files online. It is great for University students to share their unit’s files which can be accessed from anywhere and any device. Dropbox expanded their Web 2.0 application to be accessible from many different devices that works with IOS such as Apple products, iPhone and iPad, Android and Blackberry. There are a lot of features that Dropbox provide, which are:

• 2GB of Dropbox for free and 100GB for subscriptions.
• Files are always available from the secure Dropbox website.
• Works with many IOS such as Windows, Mac, Linux, iPad, iPhone, Android and BlackBerry.
• Works even when offline. Users can use their file while offline.
• Users can set the bandwidth limits so it will not slow the connection speed.

With these entire features that Dropbox application provides. Therefore, it is definitely above the level of the single device for the reason that it makes using the Internet and it applications much easier to the users. Also, users can be updated all the time, which is one of the most important factors that Web 2.0 provides. However, one of the main issues of using Dropbox is when users share their file with others, it can be edit from anyone which may results to wrong editing or deleting files. In general, I use Dropbox so much in my University studying especially with my group, because it is the easier way and method to be updated with my unit and group process.

So my question for this week blog is, what other features that could be added to Dropbox?

Gmail

Rich user experience is a combination of two elements, which are GUI style (Graphical User Interface) application and multimedia content. Users will have the ability to experience a computer-based software program technology that is growing in Web 2.0. The most important factor that assists the Rich user experience is AJAX. AJAX is mixture of many different technologies and Web 2.0 values, which are used together to create the Rich user experience. XHTML, CSS, XML and JavaScript are the technologies and values that come under AJAX. Also, one of the important benefits that appear from using AJAX is the user gains a richer experience visually and productively.

There are a lot of good examples of Rich user experience Web 2.0 applications. However, the best example (in my opinion) is Google mail (Gmail). Google mail which known as Gmail is consider as a rich user experience for the reason that it is accessible from anywhere, a strong database search ability and large storage size. Gamil provides the capability to the user to access their own Gmail from anywhere with easy access, which also it can be used from most of these days device such as mobile phone, Notebook and any device that can connect to the Internet. Also, users can access Gmail in many different methods thought offering free POP3 and IMPA accesses to download the mails that comes to the user Gmail account to another email that the users preferred mail. Gmail offers free 1 GB storage space for every user that could be access form any where and from any devices, which is an advantage for the user to save their files and use it later from everywhere (like what I do). Gmail strong database search ability provides a similar powerful search engine to the user emails as the normal search engine. For example, if the user is looking for an email that is relate to one of his/her University units, the Gmail search engine will find any email that containing the same word that the user write.

Gmail provides a lot of Rich user experience Web 2.0 application features such as email receiving speed, receiving and replying emails comes as chat so the user will understand the entire conversation in the mail chain and the ability to integrate Gmail with any Google products such as Gtalk.

So today question is, what are the five important factors that should be in any Eamil?

SongDNA

The new technologies from Web 2.0 are offering a lot of features that lead to human and technology growth. So this week blog I will be talking about API and giving you an example of Innovation in assembly . API is an application programming interface, it is a software-software interface and the user has nothing to do with it. The applications talk to each other’s without any user input, information or knowledge. User cannot see the process for the reason that the applications are working together behind the scenes.

One good example on how API works is ordering a pizza online. There are two options to buy your pizza online, cash payment or credit card payment, if the person chose to make a credit card payment that person will enter his/her credit card information. The pizza online order website will use APIs to send the credit card information to another application that prove whether your information is correct or not. If the credit card information are correct or not the application will send a response back to the website to show the user the result of the process, if it is OK or not.

One good example on Innovation in assembly is SongDNA. SongDNA is an iPhone and Android application that provides the user with the most information about any song. All the data is collected from more than 7 sources on the Internet. Also, it shows the information of any song in many different types such videos (YouTube), Artist information (BBC Music), social media (Twitter), Chart information (Billboard), Artist tourdates (BandsInTown), Images inspiration (Open Clip Art Library), Facebook integration (Facebook) and Images integration (Mobypicture). SongDNA make finding information about any song easy and simple through collecting many different data from different websites and put it in one application

So, this week question will be, what would be your best websites to collect data from? And why?

One more thing, to make easy to understand how the API work, the Coca Cola commercial can explain it in easy and fun way.

Yahoo Answer

As we all know that the world is changing so fast, in the technology and the Internet aspect, and people needs are remarkable increasing. Web 2.0 change how the Internet and the users rule through having a lot of amazing features that improves the Web functionality as well as how the people can use it for their own needs. One of most important features that Web 2.0 is offering is Data for the reason that it assists all the kind of users. Businesses will have the ability to save their users data, which is more important than making or creating a new data. Also, users will have the capability to socialize, share their knowledge and experience with other people.

There are many websites are based on users data which is all about making most of the information that the website have is form the user input. One of the best examples is Yahoo Answer which launched in 2005.

Yahoo Answer is one of Yahoo website features that allow users to contribute with each other through asking and answering many different kind of questions. Also, it is a place where users can share their knowledge, experience and opinion with other people throw answering their questions. Yahoo Answer shows the user data through presenting users questions and answers. Users can create their own account and start writing questions or answers that will become a new data for Yahoo Answer. Yahoo Answer is enhancing their core data through tags, notes, profiles and categories. Yahoo Answer is a big user database that almost all the information it has is from users. However, one of the mine issues that it has is in the legal and ethical aspect of using it, users may using it for illegal use such as asking for a copy write sources which they can download it for free or user may using it for unethical use such as asking a racist questions or answering questions with a bad language or behavior.

Almost 6 years since Yahoo Answer has been launched, which I think it has a massive database from users around the world. However, my question for this week blog is:

Do you think most of the users data that Yahoo Answer has will be important or useful in the future? Why?