Ektron and SitePoint did a survey of 5,000 web developers over the US summer, and have just released the results in a report entitled The State of Web Development 2006/2007. It’s packed full of useful data, even in the 25-page preview (which is free). The bits that particularly interested me were the following two charts, showing which web technologies developers and organizations are using now – and plan to use in future.
Interestingly AJAX is not that far behind Flash (which has been around for much longer). See below for more on that trend… Blogs are well-used, while wikis not so – no real surprise there, as blogs are generally easier to use. Syndication / RSS at 36% is still a little low, but I predict it’ll be much higher next year thanks to the likes of Microsoft and Yahoo bringing it into the mainstream.
Most web technologies will apparently be used more – in particular Ajax, which next year is predicted to surpass Flash for the first time.
I’m quite surprised that syndication is not planned to be used more next year, as to my mind RSS and syndication has only just scratched the surface of development opportunities. Custom search is another that I pick to be used more – yet it’s slated to go down in this report! Microformats are probably a ‘long bet’, as it’s still low on peoples radar according to this report.
What will be the next big thing on the Web?
I also enjoyed the section about the ‘next big thing’ on the Web. Some responses:
- Real-time visual 3D view and navigation of a site
- more standards compliance, responsible use of technologies and semantics
- portable information progress
- Paradigm shift: you will not search the Web for information. You will define what you want, and the Web will collect it for you.
- Voice interactivity/navigation
- “…total immersion. Cell phones, PDAs, laptops, PCs, TVs – so many different ways exist to access the Web and more are added every day. The Web is going to become –if it hasn’t already – the hub on which the world spins.”
- “Integration of Internet technologies into everyday life that does not involve a desktop or even a mobile/cell/PDA”
What are your thoughts on the next big thing on the Web?
Originally published on ReadWriteWeb (archived copy)