Dr. Mark Drapeau is an Associate Research Fellow directing the Social Software for Security (S3) project at the Center for Technology and National Security Policy of the National Defense University in Washington, DC.

Thoughts of a future President Obama have gotten many people in the tech community abuzz with glee. Indeed, this is a great opportunity for new ideas and creativity to impact the federal government, and society in general. As someone who works in the government every day, I’d like to see the readers of Mashable put their money where their mouths are, as it were.

Many people have commented to me personally, and in general, that the term “Web 2.0” and anything else with “2.0” after it is tired. When I was very new to the social software world, I was sitting next to Peter Shankman at a workshop when he exclaimed, “If I hear someone mention the term Web 2.0 one more time, I’m going to [redacted]!” I was half-laughing, and half-terrified, since I had only just recently heard the term!

Using “2.0” to denote applying new social technology to a noun has become practically ubiquitous. So maybe its use is tired. But often people don’t have any better ideas. Articles like this and this prove that while empty criticism is easy to dish out, suggesting good alternatives is hard work.

Searching for alternatives

My gut told me that better ideas were out there. As a preliminary test, I recently queried my Twitter followers for ideas about what to rename Government 2.0, and got one great response from Jody Reale. She suggested “Quantum Government,” which I like, because in physics a quantum is the smallest unit that light can be broken into. If we consider government the light and individual employees the quanta, we might think of social media empowering each individual quantum to achieve more than they could before, and truly make the whole more than the sum of its parts.

Help a bureaucrat out

Let’s get back to Peter Shankman, who created a wonderful crowdsourcing service called Help a Reporter Out (HARO), which connects reporters’ story ideas with sources’ knowledge. Well, I hope that the people who read this column can “help a bureaucrat out” – what do you think Government 2.0 should be renamed? Please post your comments publicly here on Mashable, and discuss them with me and amongst yourselves. Be creative, be vicious, and most importantly, have fun.

To make things interesting, I’m going to personally give away prizes. First prize will be an excellent blue CIA coffee thermos and other emblazoned gear (pens, etc.). Runner-up will be an awesome-looking classic white coffee mug from the historic and prestigious National War College in Washington, DC. Finally, I will give out a prize for the “most creative” name that isn’t chosen in the top-two (I have to be creative with that prize, so I haven’t thought of it yet – suggestions?).

So, do you have something for me? Can you beat Jody’s “Quantum Government” idea, currently the number one? And most importantly, will the readers of Mashable prove that government crowdsourcing can really work? I challenge you.

Dr. Mark Drapeau is an Associate Research Fellow directing the Social Software for Security project at the Center for Technology and National Security Policy of the National Defense University in Washington, DC. These views are his own and not the official policy or position of any part of the U.S. Government.

Image courtesy of iStockPhoto, klikk

—Related Articles at Mashable | All That’s New on the Web:In Finland, Government Disconnects ItselfFacebook Banned For Ontario Government EmployeesWhat Happens When the Government Goes Web 2.0Granicus Gets $10M for Government Webcasting ToolsGoogle’s Hopes for Government WebsitesUK Politicians Seek To Legislate Against YouTube ViolenceGovernmentdocs.org Adds Social Twist to the Freedom of Information Act

Source:Mashable!

Want to know what the future for big web portals will look like? Yahoo’s developer team might just have an answer. Using YUI 2.x and YUI 3-based framework, they’re working on a new front page that will enable extensive customization for users; developers, on the other hand, will be able to create third party applications for the page.

Developers should go over to the YUI blog for the nitty gritty details. From the user’s standpoint, this means that Yahoo’s new homepage will be very customizable, with a dashboard area (on the left side of the screenshot) where you’ll be able to check Yahoo and non-Yahoo applications and services. On the other hand, Yahoo will “learn” from your browsing habits and bring you content tailored to your needs. Finally, you’ll feel more connected, as you’ll be able to see what your friends are up to, be it on one of Yahoo’s services or the web in general.

Does all this sound a bit like Facebook? It’s definitely a step in that direction; a web portal should be the center of your internet experience, and social networking is becoming a crucial part of it. It seems that Yahoo has decided it’s finally time to leave the old “portal” concept behind and move into uncharted territory. We’ll see how this pans out for them; I’ve heard people say hundreds of times that the average user doesn’t want customization, and that a simple, static web portal is still the way to go if you’re catering to a massive audience. However, things change fast on the internet; it’s sometimes better to be one step ahead than one step behind.

Yahoo has already started testing the new homepage, starting with the US, UK, France and India: if you’re connecting from one of those countries, you might be one of the lucky users chosen for “bucket” testing. If you’re not, there’s no way to get in, so you’ll just have to wait like the rest of us.

—Related Articles at Mashable | All That’s New on the Web:Shozu: Send Your Cellphone Photos To FlickrBuzzwire Content to be Syndicated through SurfKitchen’s Mobile PortalYahoo Dives Into Mobile Bookmarking with onePlaceMicrosoft MSN Mobile Portal: More Content, More AdsSideStep Partners with Washington Post for Travel SearchAOL Launches ParentDishMicrosoft Acquires Social Shopping Network Jellyfish

Rediff, one of the top online portals in India and one currently listed on the NASDAQ stock market, has evidently followed the past year progress of third-party developments within Facebook closely. Now it wants to stir a similar amount of interest in its own set of properties as well. Announced at Delhi’s Proto.in startup event, Rediff officially took the covers off its own developer program, called, plainly enough, The Rediff Platform.

The reason for the Facebook reference is simple. The company states that its properties are “being made…to support FBML,” Facebook’s markup language.

Indeed, Rediff is pushing an idea eminently synonymous with Facebook’s own. The phrase “apps economy” is writ large on the Rediff Developers page. But it’s also an effort that the company hopes will align with multiple pieces of the Rediff puzzle. To kick off the developer program, Rediff is first opening iShare, its music, video, and photo sharing service.

The company is promising grants to some students and entrepreneur developers through a basic submission program it is calling “Sociali.” The sum being touted by the company to fuel ideas thought promising ideas is 250,000 rupees, or US$5,800. A relatively small figure, it seems, especially if juxtaposed against Rediff’s expected revenue report for Q2 2008 (roughly $17 million). All may depend on the supply of developers Rediff finds enticing enough to fund in the weeks and months ahead.

The company states that developers ready to begin fabricating can now do so with data provided through its new website.

—Related Articles at Mashable! - The Social Networking Blog:Google and Yahoo Looking to Acquire India-Based RediffiShare, The Indian YouTubeYahoo Takes Large Stake in India’s Tyroo MediaThe Daily Poll: Would You Build Apps for the MySpace Developer Platform?LinkedIn Outlines Strategy for Upcoming PlatformClearspring Opens Community Platform for DevelopersThe Daily Poll: Which Platform is the Best Opportunity for Developers?