Jelly is a web development environment that works to close the gap between bloggers and programmers. The software, which is open-source, lives on the server of it a user who maintains complete control over the data. Technically, it strives to break down the seemingly insurmountable wall of interactive web development. It does so by giving users a simple environment for creating complex websites, as well as ways to store, access and share their data in a way that doesn't even feel like working with a database.

I think it's safe to say that the web and computers have lost their enigma. As people maintain blogs that detail the most meaningless aspects of their daily lives and others post embarrassing party pictures on social sites, it's clear that the web is no longer an inherent source of distrust where anybody would fear entering their credit card on even a mainstream site. It's even passed the point where too much comfort starts to conflict with relationships and jobs in their real, non-web lives. But for all this willingness to participate in internet culture, its users are woefully under-equipped.

While an array of tools have appeared enabling the average Joe to create and distribute content to the virtual world, powerful programming languages have remained in the hands of a capable few. This has created a situation where, without the ability to do it themselves, web users turn to sites provided by businesses to host their content. Blogger, MySpace, YouTube and Flickr, the typical examples of corporation-managed, have a pseudo laissez-faire look and feel to them. Most content providers don't run into trouble with the visions of these sites, but each site has a hard-wall policy, and at the end of the day, they control the data their users upload, can remove it at any time, and can hold it hostage. Even Wikipedia and Delicious—sublime examples of organizations that are pushing the envelope for their users—are ultimately remote server-driven and there is a wall between users and their data.

Contrast this with the situation of an independent web developer with knowledge of a programming language like PHP and database skills. With a web hosting account that costs a few dollars a month (or a server of their own), they can develop anything from their own blog to a rich, interactive mimic of Flickr. They can target the entire world or just a small set of friends. The data may nominally be controlled by a web hosting company, but at any time the independent developer can copy the code off the server and the database can be backed up to their own computer. The two issues that separate Joe from Flickr are a small programming staff and limited money for servers to handle the large load.

Creators of today are mostly generators of content, which generally means blog postings, photographs, music, videos or other static, bounded kinds of media. Jelly is not directly interested in, nor does it directly address these end users. The creators of the near future will be creators of systems, not media. The gaming market already creates games that give their players the ability to create rule sets and play them out in a multi-user environment. Jelly wants to take that formula for rich expression and hand it to the repressed users of today's web.