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Mash-Up

Vangie Beal
Last Updated May 24, 2021 7:48 am

The term mash-up refers to a new breed of Web-based applications created by hackersand programmers (typically on a volunteer basis) to mix at least two different services from disparate, and even competing, Web sites. A mash-up, for example, could overlay traffic data from one source on the Internet over maps from Yahoo, Microsoft, Google or any content provider. The term mash-up comes from the hip-hop music practice of mixing two or more songs.

This capability to mix and match data and applications from multiple sources into one dynamic entity is considered by many to represent the promise of the Web servicestandard (also referred to as on-demand computing).

Also see Understanding “Web Services” in the “Did You Know…?” section of Webopedia.