SEO Experts Tips

The buzz is growing about Web 3.0, but as usual you have to filter out all the hype, self-serving PR, old-fashioned nonsense, newfangled marketing verbiage and other noise. You will then find a few facts that you can grab onto and try to figure out what’s going on. The first thing to remember is that, like “Web 2.0,” the term Web 3.0 is not an official term of any sort, does not represent any particular protocol or standard, belongs to no one – and is used, misused and made nearly meaningless by everybody. It is, quite simply, just an arbitrary “version number” that, at most, describes how the Internet is built and how it delivers services, at least as of the freeze-framed moment in time that represents the end of 2.0 and the start of 3.0.
Sometimes it is called the “semantic Web,” but perhaps the less-used term “everyware” is more descriptive. The new scenario is one of ubiquitous computing, the advent of cloud computing where a “thin client” (no- or low-powered PC, or even just a monitor and mouse) runs cloud-based applications using cloud-based data and services. The Apple iPhone, iPod and iPad are all examples of formerly standalone devices that were integrated into the Web, and connect people in a seamless, real-time and very simple way with – well, with everything, from libraries and department stores to other people, anywhere in the world.

From Read-Only to Interactivity
One of the Web’s true “parents” was Tim Berners-Lee, who had his own notion of how the technology and the Internet developed. The first phase of the Web had read-only capabilities. It was essentially a spectator experience until read-write functionality came along (sure, call it Web 2.0) that included services to enable contribution, collaboration, content creation and interactivity. The next step in Berners-Lee’s version vision, Web 3.0, is heralded as “new territory,” where users can assemble and run their own applications, create all sorts of cooperative and collaborative enterprises, and truly put their ideas in motion rather than simply uploading stuff to this, that or the other site.

People with money invested in other, still-useful devices – phones, PDAs, fax machines, etc. – don’t have to worry about Web 3.0 making them obsolete. In addition to letting users create their own tools, Web 3.0 is another step in the evolution of usage and interaction in which the Internet holds multiple databases and content that will be accessible to many non-browser-based devices and applications. The obvious uses will be video that streams from a PC to a TV, picture frames that receive wireless updates from an online or local photo app, and phones that display items recommended by your trusted sources – friends, review sites, experts – when you’re shopping.

From Data to Knowledge
In addition to the foregoing characteristics, Web 3.0 is also said to encompass other important advances. For one thing, all sorts of inputs are possible, which means all sorts of new combinations become possible. Content can be made even more broadly relevant when it’s related to GPS, so that social networking, for example, can be enhanced by knowing who is where and doing what.

More importantly, you will get more and better control of your data and be able to establish a number of personalization systems to “wrap” your personal information with different levels and types of protection – so that you can share it widely, narrowly or not at all. Over time, the accuracy of recommendations and trustworthiness of ranking systems will help us determine which data sources to take seriously and which to avoid.

From Business Faxes to Online Games
With the rise of “linkable web apps” you will be able to use all of your different desktop, server and mobile devices and applications – telephones, fax machines and online fax services, instant messaging, pagers – and control them from a single browser window on your desktop, smartphone or handheld device. All of it will take place in an always-on, always-everywhere environment, with functionality embedded sometimes in hardware, sometimes in software, sometimes in both – so that when you need to take care of business without downloading the capability, you’ll be able to do so.

Along with more of the visual and voice-based services that are already starting to proliferate, there will be more lifelike avatar interactions in the growing virtual social networking world. This will lead to social shopping trips and virtual reality gaming far beyond anything currently being done.

In mid-2009, the “Wall Street Journal” ran a story on the development of Web 3.0 capabilities and the promise of ever-greater interconnectedness among technologies, products, services and people. The story even gave us a yardstick by which to measure the success of Web 3.0, if in fact it does succeed. If, as the WSJ puts it, “computing could become as integrated and invisible as electricity and just as important” – and we can attribute it to the new and improved Web – we’ll know that the promise has lived up to the hype. Here’s hoping!

Author/Metro Hi Speed

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During a recent educational seminar conducted by a friend and business leader, the dialogue turned to the importance of web site accessibility. Incredulous, a seminar attendee inquired, “Why in the world would a blind person need a computer?” In the equally incredulous and reproachful commentary that followed, it occurred to me that there are probably a great many otherwise very bright and capable individuals who wonder the same thing. If you haven’t ever been exposed to someone who is blind and who makes efficient use of assistive technology to accomplish tasks, then how would you have the slightest idea what is possible? A few short minutes with a search engine can reveal a universe you might not have known existed. Sometimes, the truth is that we must admit that we don’t even know what we don’t know.

If you are a business owner, you might agree that the most rudimentary business model would be to sell as much as you can to as many as you can. With that in mind, it would make little sense to prohibit the entire population of Michigan, Minnesota, Montana and Missouri from patronizing your business. Yet, that is analogous to what would happen if you overlook the benefits of making your web site accessible to people who have vision loss.

According to the statistical snapshots taken by the National Center For Health Statistics, in the 2006 National Health Interview Survey (cdc.gov/nchs), approximately 21.2 million people in the U. S. have significant vision loss. In this case, the definition of vision loss is a broad one, but it includes individuals who have reported that they have trouble seeing even with glasses or contacts, as well as individuals who reported that they cannot see anything at all. The survey did not, however, include anyone under the age of 18, nor did it include individuals living in institutionalized housing, such as nursing homes or assisted living facilities. Of the 21 plus million, a significant portion are regular computer users. About 8 million have a post-secondary education, and 14 million or so have a household income of over $20,000 per year. Approximately 9 million are baby boomers.

Computer users who are blind or who have low vision make use of assistive technology that enables their computer to talk to them. This is achieved either by using the accessibility features already built into the operating system, or by using a software program called a screen reader, or a combination. A screen reader is a program that translates on-screen text into speech. This speech can approximate a natural human voice, or it can sound more synthesized or “robotic.” Whether a text-to-speech voice sounds more or less lifelike is a matter of personal preference, but the newest synthesized voices are fully digitized and sound very natural.

The simplest way to describe how a screen reader works is to say that the software “speaks” aloud everything that is happening on the screen that a sighted person could see. This includes, but is not limited to, pull-down menus, dialog boxes, error messages, icons on the desktop, window title bars, radial buttons, email messages and documents. Just about anything that can be seen is spoken aloud to a PC user who is blind. What the screen reader is actually “seeing” however, is not necessarily the text that appears on the computer monitor. The screen reader is in most cases making use of the underlying HTML or other programming language that is not visible to the end user.

While screen readers can read nearly every kind of web site text you are likely to encounter, what a screen reader cannot do is identify or “read,” a photograph or graphic. That is, unless the web designer embeds alt tag descriptive text behind the graphic, where it is not visible to a sighted web user.

If you want your web site visitors to quickly locate the “buy it now” button, or the price of your merchandise, or a special feature, or your company phone number, it is a good idea to make that information available to a screen reader through liberal use of alt tag text. Tool tips can also be voiced aloud by a screen reader program, so widespread use of pop up hints or tool tips can be very helpful. If your site visitor is blind or has difficulty manipulating a mouse, the keyboard is used to navigate instead. Therefore, all functions on your web site should be accessible by way of keyboard commands. Most screen reader software utilizes the tab key in place of the mouse. This key is used to jump from link to link, speaking aloud the name of the link as well as its purpose. As a blind computer user, I need to know if the link is a button, data entry field or edit box, or if it is a link that will take me to more information.

If you are an online business owner, you probably want to make the buying process for your customers simple and convenient. Even a modest level of accessibility can be achieved easily, by using “alt tags” throughout your web site. These suggestions are a bare minimum you might consider as a starting place, however, there is a standard of compliance as set forth by the W3C. To view a comprehensive set of guidelines for web accessibility, go to the W3C web site. For an explanation in plain English, go to Wikipedia. If you would prefer a lively debate on web accessibility as it pertains to usability and current programming platforms, you can find that, too.

America’s largest demographic group, the ‘baby boomers’ are our society’s economic powerhouse. They are America’s greatest generation, as well as the greatest consumers of goods, services and information. That about covers what you sell online, doesn’t it? As this aging demographic nears retirement, they will be accompanied by a full complement of age and disease related complications, among these, vision loss.

Think about ways in which to improve accessibility to your web properties. In a shifting economic climate, can any business really afford to be exclusive? If your goal is to sell as much as you can to as many as you can, consider making the buying process as easy and as accessible, as possible. To understand the value of web site accessibility is to acknowledge the value of all people, from all walks of life. Accommodating the needs of computer users with disabilities might enhance both your worldview and your bottom line.

Laura Legendary

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