A few days back, someone asked me why I have declared HR’s halfVAST Blog as “100% Web 1.5 Guaranteed,” rather than “100% Web 2.0 Guaranteed.”  Well, the short answer is that because it isn’t Web 2.0.

Here is what halfVAST.com does:

• uses xHTML 1.0 Strict as its markup language
• uses CSS to separate layout from content
• uses <table> tags for tabular data, not for layout
• uses Javascript for some functions
• uses PHP and Mysql for dynamic server-side applications and data management.

And here is what halfVAST.com doesn’t do:

• it does not fully utilize the technologies that are included in most definitions of Web 2.0, such as AJAX.
• it does not implement the Semantic Web model
• It does not have mashups in the true definition of the term.

So I use the term “Web 1.5,” as I like to think halfVAST.com is indeed chasing the Web 2.0 Brass Ring, but still needs to take many more rides on the Carousel!

Many sites are advertised as “Web 2.0” or even “Web 3.0” based on their outward appearance…but as we all know, looks can be deceiving.  Sort of reminds me of the Plasma and LCD TV advertisements…some can display true HDTV out-of-the-box while others are “HDTV-Ready” and need an external tuner to provide true HDTV.  You typically have to read the fine print to determine which is offered with a particular make and model.