Top Ten Web 2.0 Lies

The always-entertaining Dan Fost has a fun Friday read, reminding us that, in the wake of Google paying $1.65 billion for a web site that lets people upload videos (and has already been the target of lawsuits), it might be time to reconsider our exuberance for anything that has the "Web 2.0" moniker attached to it.

His top ten list of Web 2.0 lies is a quick and humorous read, but it's also an honest assessment of the industry that many think will earn them a quick buck. Do we really need 60 or so social networking sites? Does "ease of use" really attract an enormous audience? (Your Ajax-driven site may be easy to use, but what does it do?) And is Google really going to buy this thing?

Not every site with "Web 2.0" in its description is going to be a winner, but does that mean we're seeing the second coming of the infamous dot-com bubble? Onlookers have actually been talking about the Web 2.0 bubble for a year now. (Actually, it probably started when the phrase was first used.)

I realize few of you out there are probably considering launching your own Web 2.0 startup, and I don't want to discourage you at all. Just use a little common sense... and watch your step!