Will "Web 2.0" finally fulfill the potential of the Internet to completely change the way we do business, or is there still a long road to go before we see the promise of the web come to fruition?
Eric Panepinto, USERS
If you ask 10 different people to define "Web 2.0," you're likely to hear 10 different answers. Coined in 2004, the term Web 2.0 refers broadly to the next generation of the Internet. While definitions vary widely, it's generally viewed as the move away from static, information-only sites to a much more interactive, engaging community environment. Like most technology developments, the move to Web 2.0 is an evolutionary one; consider how many Websites already allow much more interactivity than they did just a year ago. Sites like eBay, Wikipedia, and Craigslist, which create entire self-service communities, are touted as some of the closest examples of Web 2.0 to date. Within the relatively short timeframe since its inception, Web 2.0 seems to be moving in the generally intended direction. Huge progress has been made over the last two years, with many new protocols introduced over time. Yet, there is still a lack of clear definitions and commonly agreed-upon standards and protocols.
I believe it will take a few more years of technology refinement and standardization before the true power of Web 2.0 is achieved and its true potential realized. The advanced state of many of the services already provided over the Web today shows that the evolution has begun and that the concept of Web 2.0 is starting to be realized in some ways today. However, I think it will take another 18 to 36 months for it to reach its true intended vision. In the meantime, your credit union should look past the hype and continue to focus on implementing Internet applications that will add value for your specific field of membership and help you achieve your business goals.
David Van Pelt, IA Systems
Web 2.0 has many meanings, but for our purposes it implies a connected network of software applications that communicate securely over the public Internet. This environment provides opportunities to change the way credit unions do business.
Many companies have seized the opportunity to offer their software applications as "services" that perform discrete functions over the Internet. By connecting all of these services into seamless workflows for business transactions and processes, credit unions can enhance and expand their services to their members. They can also do it faster and cheaper. Credit unions that choose to partner with technology leaders that share this vision will realize significant advantages.
This transformation reminds me of the host vendors' move to provide XML interfaces about 6 years ago. Many of the forward thinking companies realized that they could not offer competitive solutions to all aspects of the credit unions' business. They developed interfaces to allow credit unions to select best-of-breed solutions and seamlessly connect them with contemporary technologies.
Web 2.0 is an extension of that concept and leverages the ubiquitous and powerful Internet to open many new possibilities while simplifying the interfacing connections. WWWC, MISMO, STAR and other organizations provide standards for communicating securely over the public Internet. The result is a simpler interconnected environment of software applications that know how to talk to each other. Workflows will no longer be contained in a single software application. They will traverse the Internet for real-time data that will fuel your decisions.
If that's not exciting enough, Google 'Web 3.0' to see what's next.
David McConney, Harland Financial Solutions
Since Web 2.0 is still a fairly new technology/service, it has not been adopted widely and has yet to make inroads within the credit union market. However, because it is next generation and allows Web applications, services, etc. to be interwoven and be more interactive, it will likely become mainstream as it evolves. Business and technology developments that utilize the Web as a platform will define how the Web will drive business in the future and the evolution of Web 2.0 in that process. Now that the Web has become a robust platform with countless innovations driving its ongoing development, widespread disruptions as well as opportunities are well underway and will continue to drive the evolution of the Web.
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