Abstract
Web applications bring about extraordinary breakthroughs regarding our digital ecosystem. Pretty much anything with a chip and a radio interface can connect to the Web. However, many advocate a complete overhaul of the Internet as the only means to sustain innovation and productivity. Nobody knows what the next-generation of the Internet will look like; though important clues are visible as years of research have already generated phenomenal ideas. Together, we'll bring a range of network mechanisms "out of the lab" that can make the Net more proactive, reactive, robust and, ultimately, more pervasive than it is today. Our journey starts by scrutinizing the inexorable transformation of Web Applications in order to unveil the intrinsic limitations of the Internet. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.