This document outlines selection criteria for choosing a Web 2.0 platform for biomedical research including considerations around hosting, pricing models, development support, storage, security, interoperability, user access controls, communication tools, user interface, content creation abilities, search and tagging, linking options, notifications, and additional features.

1. SELECTION CRITERIA FOR WEB 2.0 PLATFORM FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH
CRITERIA CONSIDERATIONS
Hosting Internal /external server
Pricing
Open source; commercial licensing; subscription-based;
fee-based (“Freemium” options offer basic features for free
and more advanced features for a fee.)
Development
Preconfigured; customizable; end-user do-it-yourself;
no code; coding required
Training/Support No cost customer support; fee-based; community
Storage Quota; restrictions
Security HIPAA compliance; mail encryption; blacklist; host blocking
Interoperability Organizational IT policies/capabilities; existing software
Content Access Authoring/access granularity for internal/external users
Communication Mix
Announcements; blogs; microblogging; wikis; forums;
comments; instant messaging; chat; RSS feeds;
granular portals
User Interface
Usability vs. functionality; customization; content
organization; WYSIWYG content creation and editing;
search; end user-tested intuitiveness
Content Creation
Granular, user generated; collaborative editing;
method and variety of file-type uploading
Search and Tagging
Labeling and retrieval with user-generated ontology/
folksonomy; content/attachment search
Linking
Hypertext link to redirect to internal content/attachments and
outside resources
Notifications RSS feed; email subscription; push vs. pull; frequency
Extras
Embedded flash/video; media/image editing; templates;
integrated calendar; plug-ins; user/page analytics