Welcome to the evolved Web! In the last few years, the Web has changed dramatically. In its infancy, the Web was a medium used mainly to convey static information ("Look, my home page is on the Web!"). Now, large parts of the Web carry information that is dynamically generated by application programs, on which enterprises and even individuals rely for their intranets and public websites.

Because of the clear benefits of databases (better accessibility and structuring of information), web applications are mostly database driven. The front-end used is the well known (and quickly deployed) web browser, and there is a database system at the back-end. Application programs provide the interface between the browser and the database.

Those who are not operating a database-driven website today are not using the medium to its fullest capability. Also, they could be lagging behind competitors who have made the switch. So it is not a question of whether we should implement a database-driven site, but it is more about when and mostly how to implement it.

Why web applications? They improve user experience and involve them in the process by opening up possibilities such as:

Nowadays, WWW might stand for World-Wide Wave, a big wave that profoundly modifies the way developers think about user interface, data presentation, and most of all, the way data reaches users and comes back to the data center.