The next internet - Web 3.0

You have probably come across the term Web 3.0 while going through blockchain, cryptocurrency, metvaerse etc. You might be wondering what this Web 3.0 is? Is this the next internet revolution? And you also wonder how this will be different from Web 1.0 and Web 2.0? As with every new technology, Web 3.0 is a revolution for tech evangelists and for skeptics, it’s an overhype. So, is this really the next internet revolution or a studpid idea? Let’s find out..

Road to Web 3.0

Before we jump in to understand Web 3.0, let’s take a look at how the internet evolved what are Web 1.0 and Web 2.0

The Beginning - Web 1.0

Web 1.0 refers to the very first stage of the world wide web. This is also referred to as Syntactic web or a read only web era. This was the beginning of today’s internet. In simple terms, Web 1.0 was just a Content Delivery Network (CDN). Where providers built static web pages which are connected using hyperlinks and users of Web 1.0 were just consuming this information. However, the information was largely disorganised and difficult to navigate.

The design essentials of a Web 1.0 website include

1. Static pages
2. Content was served from the server's file system
3. The pages were built using Server Side Includes (SSI) or Common Gateway Interface(CGI)
4. Frames and tables were used to position and align the elements on a webpage

There is no option given for the user or consumer to communicate back the information to the content producers.

You can check the first worldwideweb browser: https://worldwideweb.cern.ch/

The web we are using now - Web 2.0

Web 2.0 refers to the advancement in the internet over Web 1.0. This is referred to as a Read-Write web or Social Web. This is the internet we use today. Definitely it is a better version of Web 1.0, Web 2.0 facilitated the interaction between content provided and users and intern allowed users to communicate with other users too. This brought a fundamental shift, where people can share their reviews, feedback, perspectives to the content they consume. In this version, users can also be content providers.

In this version of the Web, search engines become more advanced and proliferate, since there is no more room for lists of links in directories, which has given a huge volume of content made by many.

The web technologies like HTML5, CSS3 and Javascript frameworks like ReactJs, AngularJs, VueJs etc., enables companies to innovate new ideas which enables users to contribute more in this Social Web

Web 2.0 is the business revolution in the computer industry caused by the move to the internet as a platform, and any attempt to understand the rules for success on that new platform. – Tim O’Reilly.

Main features of Web 2.0 include

1. Users can search information and classify them collectively
2. Content they receive/view is based on the input they have given
3. Data flow was multidimensional - Information was shared between content providers and users and between users too
4. Software applications were able to communicate each other through APIs

The next revolution in internet - Web 3.0

Web 3.0 refers to the next generation of the internet, advancement over Web 2.0. Web 3.0 is referred to as a Semantic web. Web 3.0 goes deeper into building a fairer and more transparent internet. For this reason, Web 3.0 is often associated with blockchain technology. In this, data isn’t owned but instead shared, where services show different views for the same web / the same data.

Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, describes Web 3.0 as semantic web. This is web written in a code that computers can understand as well as humans. Computers designed for mobility (like smartphones) are also part of Web 3.0, as is artificial intelligence.

The Semantic Web (3.0) promises to establish “the world’s information” in a more reasonable way than Google can ever attain with their existing engine schema. In this era computers can interpret information like humans via Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. Which helps to intelligently generate and distribute useful content tailored to a particular need of a user.

Why do we need web 3.0?

As we understand Web 2.0, it is allowing users to interact with content provided and they can interact with other users too. It is providing a great opportunity for companies to innovate new ideas. Isn’t this good enough? or are we moving to Web 3.0 to overcome any hurdles or disadvantages we have in Web 2.0?

A major disadvantage seen Web 2.0 is that the data is stored on a centralised server and this is owned by a large components

Following are major concerns in Web 2.0

🏢 Centralised: All the interactions we made in Web 2.0 with the websites are stored centrally and are owned by the companies who own those sites. For Ex. When we use Facebook, Google, youtube etc., our data is stored in the servers owned by respective companies. When this happens, we will not have any authority of this data stored

🔐 Privacy: As our data is controlled by centralised authority, we don’t know how this data is used by these companies. Web 2.0 applications repeatedly experience data breaches. We will lose our privacy. Ever wondered about talking to your friends on planning a holiday trip and you start getting advertisements on Facebook or start receiving email from Travel websites?

Here is an article on how our data is used: Facebook’s data sharing deals exposed

🧾 Identity: Whenever you use the internet in Web 2.0, it is very difficult to use it anonymously. Some way or the other, it will link it back to our real identity. With links to our real identity, it becomes difficult to maintain our privacy

👨🏻‍💻Technical Limitations: Lack of state is a result of the simplicity of the protocols that the web is built on, such as HTTP and SMTP. At any moment, if you were to query a node (a device connected to the internet) about its history or current state, it has no idea. The second key missing property of Web 2.0, the lack of a native mechanism to transfer state, is partly a by-product of the first issue. If you can’t hold state, you can’t transfer it

Main Features of Web 3.0

🌐 Semantic: A computers communicate with each other through AI and ML, they will now intelligently generate and distribute useful content tailored to a particular need of a user rather than displaying results based on keywords or numbers

🤖 Artificial Intelligence: In Web 3.0, computers will interpret and comprehend materials the way humans do. This results in catering the human needs in more relevant information and in a faster way and these will be tailor made to users

⛓️ Decentralised: Core feature of Web 3.0 will be Decentralised network. This will be the internet in which people can securely exchange money and information, without the need for middlemen or big tech companies. According to web3 specialists, the corporation will be run by a decentralised group known as a DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization)

Web 3.0 is the progressive evolution of the Web.  Now the advantage you will be having as a user on web 3.0 is you will own your data right and at least you will know what is happening with your data you can give the permission.

Although the way to build Web 3 apps will change in many ways as the infrastructure around it evolves, what’s key is that apps are being built today. It’s the wild west of the web as we know it and a lot of really smart teams are starting to tackle the challenges and opportunities made available.