People have started asking me for a Web 2.0 reading list–and
I’m working on one. But in the meantime, we’ve published two
books that should be on every Web 2.0 developer’s reading list
(along with more obvious books like Head Rush Ajax, Ajax Design Patterns,
and Ajax
Hacks). I’m referring to Google Maps Hacks and Flickr Hacks.
Ultimately, Web 2.0 is about the web as platform, and even if you
aren’t interested in hacking on Google Maps or Flickr, you should
be studying their APIs, because these are the two services that
have demonstrated the most viral platform behavior. There are
hundreds of Google Maps mashups and sixty or so for Flickr.
These services define what “open” looks like in the Web
2.0 era. (If I were a web developer, I’d be
paying attention to the comments on
my recent query about why developers are choosing Google Maps
over the competition. )
Meanwhile, in pursuit of that longer term project, I’d love suggestions for other books and web articles that would make up a great Web 2.0 reading list.