Differences between web 1.0, web 2.0 and web 3.0 (Explanation for dummies)

shukla7789 · Post by **shukla7789** » Mon Jan 20, 2025 10:51 am

We still didn't have a clear idea of what Web 2.0 was when IT gurus were already talking about Web 3.0. These concepts can be somewhat elusive for Internet users who use the Internet only to go to Facebook and check the latest news. That's why, in my educational efforts, I've come to explain the differences between Web 1.0, Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 in a way that anyone can understand.

web 1.0, web 2.0 and web 3.0
To appreciate the differences between these three concepts, there is nothing better than looking at what each of them consists of. I will go in order, from oldest to most modern, so let's start with Web 1.0.

Web 1.0
It's funny, but nobody was talking about Web 1.0 until the term 2.0 was coined. By then, the network of networks had already been around for a few years and everyone thought it was common sense that if there was a Web 2.0, there had to have been a Web 1.0 before it.

A tricky definition of Web 1.0 would be what existed before Web 2.0. Of course, this doesn't explain much, so it's better to look at what experts say are the main characteristics of Web 1.0 sites:

They are static: Their content is not updated, so the job seekers database is always the same. An example could be a website that simply contains the biography of a historical figure.
They are not interactive: Visitors entering a Web 1.0 site cannot do anything other than read the content. They cannot comment, rate or send their own contributions, for example.
It could be said that a company's Web 1.0 was nothing more than the transfer of its advertising material to the Internet.

Web 2.0
The term Web 2.0 was popularized in 2004 by Dale Dougherty, founder of the first advertising-supported online web portal. Dougherty realized that the Internet was no longer dominated by those static content websites where users were less of a spectator and he believed it necessary to use the term Web 2.0 for this new paradigm in which we are still immersed.

The characteristics of Web 2.0 according to experts are the following: