Web 2.0 Gobbledygook

So, what is ‘Web 2.0’? That is what I was asked a few days ago. The person asking probably was looking for a quick short response. From the conversation it dawned on me to go and investigate the academic definition of ‘Web 2.0’. So here is a primer –

Wikipedia: Web 2.0 is a term describing the trend in the use of World Wide Web technology and web design that aims to enhance creativity, information sharing, and, most notably, collaboration among users. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0)

O’Reilly: (http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html)

Web 1.0	Web 2.0
DoubleClick	Google AdSense
Ofoto	Flickr
Akamai	BitTorrent
mp3.com	Napster
Britannica Online	Wikipedia
personal websites	blogging
evite	upcoming.org and EVDB

... and more.


Paul Graham: See link http://www.paulgraham.com/web20.html

Whatisit.com: Web 2.0 (or Web 2) is the popular term for advanced Internet technology and applications including blogs, wikis, RSS and social bookmarking. (http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci1169528,00.html)

So, decide for yourself. But definitely find as much as possible - it could be interesting.

Ram.
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Case study: Good customer Service from SpiceJet of India.

We had planned a family vacation in India that required us to travel from Delhi to Chennai (for those of you not familiar with the geography of India, Delhi is up north and Chennai down south). About two weeks ago, I booked our tickets on SpiceJet (http://www.spicejet.com/), one of the low-cost local carriers in India. However, our vacation plans had to be cancelled due to a medical emergency and thus started my arduous task of cancelling all flight and train and other bookings.

Our tickets were non-refundable, online only discount fares – meaning they would hold it for a year for us but would not refund the monies. Knowing that we were not planning a visit to India anytime soon, I called SpiceJet customer service this morning. Spoke with a wonderful customer service agent and explained the situation. After a few minutes of holding, she came back and said they would refund the monies. No extra fees – just the regular cancellation fees. The only caveat - this had to be processed by a different department and would take a few days to credit back the amounts.

This is truly good customer service - coming from a country that just a decade ago did not the definition of customer service. There is no doubt in my mind that with such customer orientation and service focus, the only way for India is growth and progress.

SpiceJet says “Welcome on board India's newest, smartest and most affordable low-fare airline.” I look forward to flying SpiceJet next time I am in India. Thank you SpiceJet.

Ram.
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