Web2.0 Textbooks

A textbook is a necessary item in formal learning because that is where we get information in order to learn a subject of interest. Our learning becomes more profound if we learn from authors who are themselves expert or experienced in the field. I have found two textbooks, discussed here, as relevant and helpful  to learning, understanding, and using Web2.0. The first of the textbooks is "Web2.0 and Beyond: Principles and Technologies" by Paul Anderson and the second is "Weblogs and Libraries" by Laurel A. Clyde. First Textbook Anderson, Paul. 2012. Web2.0 and Beyond: Principles and Technologies. Boca Raton, CRC Press.  Anderson Paul is a British writer in the field of computor science and technology. He has experience and recognition in this field and it is the reason i find his book helpful. It is also easy to follow because it is well structured. I do not intend to do a comprehensive review of this book here because a detailed review of the book may be found in http://firstmonday.or/ojs/fm/article/view/4227/3314 However, according to the review, by Yijun Gao, in part reads: The author, Paul Anderson, is a writer and technology forecaster for Intelligent Content Ltd. and has worked in academia and industry for more than two decades. His works draws the wide implications of computing as well as how other areas interpret the Web 2.0. Summaries of important research from various disciplines are also mentioned as themes in the book. Web 2.0 and beyond: Principles and technologies introduces the necessary background knowledge of today’s Web services and studies. Mr. Anderson’s book not only covers technology standards but also the processes of standardization, which shows how the inter–relatedness among them is important to understanding Web 2.0, as well as relevant key research findings. This book is well structured and divided into three sections following an introductory chapter reviewing the evolution of the Web in recent years, such as the emergence and controversy of Web 2.0, the definition of Web 2.0 by O’Reilly, and the author’s iceberg model. This chapter gives the readers an opportunity to understand the concept of Web 2.0 as a whole. Indeed the book is well structured for organized reading and learning and if you want to understand Web2.0, read chapter 1. Based on practice and readings I find that Web2.0 is now a reality taking into consideration the fact that more and more people are using Web2.0 applications such as blogs, wikis, podcasts, and RSS that connect and allow people to exchange information. In the process of exchanging information people comment or add on facts and ideas to a discussion locally or globally. It is a reality. My blogging here is part of this reality. This book was published about the time I began blogging however, reading it now makes things to fall into place. I understand a lot better now than when i began. Subsequently, i am now better able to help colleagues and others use Web2.0 applications.
Second Textbook Clyde, Laurel A. 2004. Weblogs and Libraries. Oxford, Chandos Publishing. I remember in 2004 I was trying to learn CDS/ISIS that later was developed to WIN/ISIS. I wanted to learn to create a bibliographic database.That was the year Weblogs and Libraries was published. I did not get the chance to read this book until eleven years later.  The book contains eight (8) chapters and an index at the end. Overall, the author discusses Weblogs and Libraries from two main perspectives. Firstly, it treats libraries Weblogs as sources of information for libraries and librarians. Secondly, it treats Weblogs as tools for libraries to use in order to publicise their services as well as providing a means of communication with users. It gives various examples of weblogs from the Internet. The author Dr Laurel Anne Clyde was Professor and Chair of the Library and Information Science Department at the University of Iceland, where she taught courses related to information technology in libraries and information agencies. She is the author of numerous books, including Weblogs and Libraries. The word blog is used previously and now comes weblogs. Let us take blog as a truncation of weblog. In summary, these are two relevant books to read particularly for the untrained in order to understand Web2.0.