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No, this is not another blogpost on the wonders of Web 2.0. Actually, this is a blogpost that is wondering about Web 2.0.

By definition Web 2.0 is “the generation of web-based communities and hosted services such as social-networking sites, wikis, and blogs…which aim to facilitate creativity, collaboration, and sharing among users”.

So primarily, Web 2.0 is about connections…about giving us access to friends and strangers anywhere on the planet; storing and sharing our photo albums and diaries and links; logging our briefest thoughts, cataloging our possessions, and enabling virtual and actual exchange.

So I’m wondering: if I can (and do) use the Web to access anyone, anywhere, anytime…if I can (and do) store and share my documents, photos, and thoughts online…if the Web can be (and is) my primary method for exchanging books, products, ideas, and money…then what do I need software for?

Because compared to web applications (Web 2.0 and otherwise), software is a hassle from beginning to end. There’s an—often large—upfront financial commitment, then downloads and maintenance for fixes and updates. Software requires lots of hard drive space, is bound by license to one computer, and accessing new and improved features requires spending more money on upgrades.

Web-based applications lack all that software drama. There’s almost always a free service plan, or advertiser support so it’s free to all. If there is a cost, it’s a tiny monthly subscription payment with no long-term commitment. There are no downloads or installations or maintenance. Web apps can be accessed with any Internet-connected computer with a web browser—whether Mac or PC or Linux—and improvements are integrated at no extra cost.

So here I am, liberated from my desk by a wireless Internet connection, but still tied to this specific laptop by its software. Which is totally okay…until the motherboard croaks, or the hard drive fails, or it burns up in a house fire, or I lose it, or someone steals it. Then my business is in a coma until I can get myself a new computer and reinstall all the software and recover all my files.

But if I was Web 2.0 Wondergirl, I imagine I’d find/borrow/buy another computer and get back to work within the hour. And actually, must it be a catastrophic scenario? Maybe I just want to travel light rather than lug my laptop to Mom’s, or into the city, or on a plane to…wherever. Maybe I like to be on the move and could work quite well at whatever Web-ready computer I found at the cafe, hotel, library, etc.

So I’m wondering: With the appearance of Web 2.0 collaboration tools and other sundry web applications, can we live without software?

I’ll try it and let you know.

Sometimes I wake up with nasty little doubts that prick my confidence and hamper my flow: What if the blog is a bad idea? What if I run out of topics? What if the blog doesn’t get any traffic?

Other times it’s other people’s doubts that knock me off course: “Do people actually read that?” “What’s your backup plan for when this blog thing doesn’t work out?”

Lovely.

Read more

The difference between a successful person and others
is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge,
but rather a lack of will.

Vince Lombardi

Thanks to Microsoft’s Design Gallery, VistaPrint, and others, there’s no shortage of business card templates—quantity and variety aren’t a problem. The problem is: there are only a handful of truly eye-catching business card designs among the hundreds of templates provided.

Unfortunately, these gems will also appeal to other folks with good taste. Using a template risks distributing business cards that don’t uniquely identify you. Your business card is your silent ambassador and it shouldn’t be a twin to anyone else’s. Read more

What are you reading these days? Lemme know…

I’m researching an article on web applications and have a list of great stuff for micro-business folks like us:

Business essentials require email, word processing, spreadsheets, scheduling, and project management. For these, I use Gmail, Google Documents, Google Calendar, and Basecamp.

My reasons are pretty straightforward: they’re free, they’re flexible, there’s little or no advertising, I can access them from anywhere, they’re feature-rich and well supported, new features are added regularly, and did I already say they’re free?

Sometime Essential Webware

Essentials aside, here are Web applications that come in handy on the few occasions when I need them:

• USPS.com
  I use Stamps.com software when I’m at home, but this is it for printing postage when I’m offsite.
• CatPrint.bz
  100% online professional printing services—type in your document information, upload a PDF, check your online proof, and pay. Best bit: their printing cost calculator has saved me hundreds of dollars by showing the impact of design decisions (document size, margins, etc.) on the bottom line. I love these folks.

Could be Essential Webware

Here are a bunch of sites—mostly Web 2.0, one not—that are totally new to me. I haven’t tried them yet, but most come highly recommended:

• WordPress
  I blog with it, but I hadn’t considered using Wordpress as a content management system. A grand idea: building, customizing, and editing a website without paying a penny for software.
• Picnik and Splashup
  Along the thought of free design applications, these offer online image editing with plenty of features and power.
• Blinksale
  Simple online invoicing that costs nothing if you only send a few invoices each month. Nice options like customizing invoices with your cool logo.
• Box.net
  For digitals that need a home you can access from anywhere. Perfect for sharing files and offsite backup.

Missing from this list is a desktop publishing application. Service providers for business card printing and whatnot sometimes have design/layout features built into their websites, but wouldn’t free-standing desktop publishing webware be the cherry on top?

There are plenty of web applications out there for business functions (critical or no), these are just what I use and unearthed (so far). If you have favorite webware that you use in your micro-business—especially a desktop publishing app—leave a comment and tell us all about it.

P.S. Reading back through this post, it appears someone could run a business entirely on webware. Huh. Now there’s some good news for folks looking for a low- to no-cost startup…

Next Post→

Whew! Taking a short break from blogging, folks. More posts coming soon. Thanks for your patience!

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