Difference Between Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and Web 3.0

Web 1.0 was all about fetching, and reading information. Web 2.0 is all about reading, writing, creating, and interacting with the end user. It was famously called the participative social web. Web 3.0 is the third generation of the World Wide Web, and is a vision of a decentralized web which is currently a work in progress. It is all about reading, writing, and owning.

Let’s dive deeper to know better about the features and need of Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and Web 3.0.

What is Web 1.0?  

Web 1.0 refers to the first stage of the World Wide Web evolution. Earlier, there were only a few content creators in Web 1.0 with a huge majority of users who are consumers of content. Personal web pages were common, consisting mainly of static pages hosted on ISP-run web servers, or free web hosting services. 

In Web 1.0 advertisements on websites while surfing the internet are banned. Also, in Web 1.0, Ofoto is an online digital photography website, on which users could store, share, view, and print digital pictures. Web 1.0 is a content delivery network (CDN) that enables the showcase of the piece of information on the websites. It can be used as a personal website. It costs the user as per pages viewed. It has directories that enable users to retrieve a particular piece of information. The era of Web 1.0 was roughly from 1991 to 2004. 

Four Design Essentials of a Web 1.0 Site Include:

• Static pages.
• Content is served from the server’s file system.
• Pages built using Server Side Includes or Common Gateway Interface (CGI).
• Frames and Tables are used to position and align the elements on a page.

Features of the Web 1.0

• Easy to connect static pages with the system via hyperlinks
• Supports elements like frames and tables with HTML 3.2
• Also has graphics and a GIF button
• Less interaction between the user and the server
• You can send HTML forms via mail
• Provides only a one-way publishing medium

What is Web 2.0? 

2004 When the word Web 2.0 become famous due to the First Web 2.0 conference (later known as the Web 2.0 summit) held by Tim O’Reilly and Dale Dougherty, the term was coined by Darcy DiNucci in 1999. Web 2.0 refers to worldwide websites which highlight user-generated content, usability, and interoperability for end users.  Web 2.0 is also called the participative social web. It does not refer to a modification to any technical specification, but to modify the way Web pages are designed and used. The transition is beneficial but it does not seem that when the changes occur. Interaction and collaboration with each other are allowed by Web 2.0 in a social media dialogue as the creator of user-generated content in a virtual community. Web 2.0 is an enhanced version of Web 1.0. 

Web browser technologies are used in Web 2.0 development and it includes AJAX and JavaScript frameworks. Recently, AJAX and JavaScript frameworks have become very popular means of creating web 2.0 sites. 

Features of the Web 2.0 

• Free sorting of information, permits users to retrieve and classify the information collectively.
• Dynamic content that is responsive to user input.
• Information flows between the site owner and site users using evaluation & online commenting.
• Developed APIs to allow self-usage, such as by a software application.
• Web access leads to concerns different, from the traditional Internet user base to a wider variety of users.

Usage of Web 2.0

The social Web contains several online tools and platforms where people share their perspectives, opinions, thoughts, and experiences. Web 2.0 applications tend to interact much more with the end user. As such, the end-user is not only a user of the application but also a participant in these 8 tools mentioned below:

• Podcasting
• Blogging
• Tagging
• Curating with RSS
• Social bookmarking
• Social networking
• Social media
• Web content voting

What is Web 3.0?

It refers to the evolution of web utilization and interaction which includes altering the Web into a database, with the integration of DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology blockchain is an example) and that data can help to make Smart Contracts based on the needs of the individual. It enables the up-gradation of the backend of the web, after a long time of focusing on the frontend (Web 2.0 has mainly been about AJAX, tagging, and other front-end user-experience innovation). Web 3.0 is a term that is used to describe many evolutions of web usage and interaction among several paths. In this, data isn’t owned but instead shared but still is, where services show different views for the same web / the same data.

The Semantic Web (3.0) promises to establish “the world’s information” in a more reasonable way than Google can ever attain with its existing engine schema. This is particularly true from the perspective of machine conception as opposed to human understanding. The Semantic Web necessitates the use of a declarative ontological language like OWL to produce domain-specific ontologies that machines can use to reason about information and make new conclusions, not simply match keywords. 

Features of the Web 3.0

• Semantic Web: The succeeding evolution of the Web involves the Semantic Web. The semantic web improves web technologies in demand to create, share and connect content through search and analysis based on the capability to comprehend the meaning of words, rather than on keywords or numbers.
• Artificial Intelligence: Combining this capability with natural language processing, in Web 3.0, computers can distinguish information like humans to provide faster and more relevant results. They become more intelligent to fulfill the requirements of users.
• 3D Graphics: The three-dimensional design is being used widely in websites and services in Web 3.0. Museum guides, computer games, e-commerce, geospatial contexts, etc. are all examples that use 3D graphics.
• Connectivity: With Web 3.0, information is more connected thanks to semantic metadata. As a result, the user experience evolves to another level of connectivity that leverages all the available information.
• Ubiquity: Content is accessible by multiple applications, every device is connected to the web, and the services can be used everywhere.
• DLT and Smart Contracts: With the help of DLT, we can have a virtually impossible-to-hack database from which one can have value to their content and things they can own virtually, this is the technology that enables a trustless society through the integration of smart contracts which does not need to have a middle man to be a guarantor to make that contract occur on certain cause its based on data from that DLT. It’s a powerful tool that can make the world a far better place and generate more opportunities for everyone on the internet.

Differences Between the Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and Web 3.0

1.	Mostly Read-Only	Wildly Read-Write	Portable and Personal
2.	Company Focus	Community Focus	Individual Focus
3.	Home Pages	Blogs / Wikis	Live-streams / Waves
4.	Owning Content	Sharing Content	Consolidating Content
5.	WebForms	Web Applications	Smart Applications
6.	Directories	Tagging	User behavior
7.	Page Views	Cost Per Click	User Engagement
8.	Banner Advertising	Interactive Advertising	Behavioral Advertising
9.	Britannica Online	Wikipedia	The Semantic Web
10.	HTML/Portals	XML / RSS	RDF / RDFS / OWL
11.	Data was not Focused.	Data of many was controlled by some mediatory.	Data was personalized and no use of mediatory.
12.	Information sharing is the goal.	Interaction is the goal.	Immersion is the goal.
13.	It connects information as its primary goal.	It aims to connect people.	Focuses on relating knowledge.
14.	Static websites	Introduction of web applications	Intelligent web-based functions and apps
15.	A simpler, more passive web.	An enhanced social Web	A semantic web exists.
16.	Web and File Servers, HTML, and Portals are technologies connected to Web 1.0.	AJAX, JavaScript, CSS, and HTML5 are examples of related technology.	Web 3.0 technologies include blockchain, artificial intelligence, and decentralized protocols.
17.	Associated Technologies Web and File Servers Search Engines (including AltaVista and Yahoo!) E-mail accounts (Yahoo!, Hotmail) Peer-to-Peer File Sharing (Napster, BitTorrent) and others.	Associated Technologies Frameworks for Ajax and JavaScript Microsoft.NET  Blogs Wikis and others.	Associated Technologies Searching Using Semantics Databases of Information Ontologies Intelligent Digital Personal Assistants and others.

Conclusion

Hence, these were the major difference between Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and Web 3.0 having their own uniqueness. Features of Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and Web 3.0 are clearly explained in this article and also the differences between the three. All three were used at their respective time and revolutionized the world of the web accordingly.

FAQs – Web 1.0 vs Web 2.0 vs Web 3.0

Q1: How are Web 1.0 2.0 3.0 and 4.0 different?

Web1.0 refers to a web of information, Web2.0 as a web of verbalization, Web 3.0 as a web of affiliation, Web4.0 as a web of integration and Web5.0 as a web of decentralized smart communicator.

Q2: What is Web 3.0 and examples?

Web 3.0 is a set of values and applications that define a new era of the World Wide Web, it adds up new features to the already existing ones. Its example includes decentralization, artificial intelligence, connectivity, and blockchain.

Q3: What are the 5 types of websites?

The 5 types of websites are –

1. Personal
2. Economic
3. Business
4. Blog
5. Portfolio

Last Updated :
02 Jul, 2023


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