trend topic proposal

My research topic is web norms and formats stemming from the coding end. I will focus on the ways in which these trends manifest. This technology also affects content trends in: ability, expectation and delivery. I plan to study specifically, the role that developers and web communities influence these norms among the web industry. I hope to understand the role that developers, and developer communities, play in influencing technology.
The tools and skills and core technologies, which drive the industry, are created by companies and groups as well as individuals. The audience here is the developers and the communicated message is the tools and techniques. Business practice also plays a role.
I will be able to use primary sources to study this topic; these being the websites, legacy systems, and archived versions. Sources will also include trade magazines and informational books about web technology. I will also use journals about web technology, this being the scarcest of my resources. Journals will help me understand the market and economics of the web industry.
Analyzing the present, will offer me lots of primary sources, and informational sources in the form of web sites, web communities and forums. However, there will be little academic discussion of current web technology trends.
Future speculation exists in the web in the bleeding edge sites. Also, blogs often take a crystal ball approach and should provide a good amount of information.