Rich internet applications(RIAs) have been
the height of web fashion for the past year, and have given
internet users more powerful applications with better user
interfaces than standard HTML-based websites. For some users, they
can complement, or even replace, desktop applications.
But RIAs also have drawbacks. First, they often work by
downloading code to run inside the browser, which causes a short
delay before they start up. Second, people cannot use them when
they do not have an internet connection.
The next step is obvious: instead of downloading code, why not
save it on the local PC? The basic idea is to make the application
available offline. This can also enable a website to break out of
the browser and make the leap to the desktop.
There are several ways to do this, but
Adobe is hoping to corner a large chunk of the emerging market
with its Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR). This is a rendering engine
that handles both HTML via the Webkit engine and Adobe Flash.
Obviously, HTML and Flash are not the best way to build
heavyweight desktop applications, but there are compensations. They
provide a way to develop useful lightweight applications, and to
develop and deploy them very quickly.
Developers can also provide a rich user interface, and the
result should be cross-platform: the application will "play"
wherever it finds an AIR. That means Windows and Mac today, in
beta, with other platforms to follow.
Another potential advantage is that AIR developers only need to
be proficient in ECMAscript and other web technologies, rather than
being heavyweight programmers with C++ and similar skills. In other
words, Adobe is targeting people who already use products such as
Flexbuilder, Dreamweaver, and Coldfusion rather than, say,
Microsoft.net or even Java programmers.
There is certainly a market among companies that already have
successful websites, and eBay has already released a beta of an AIR
applet, codenamed San Dimas.
There is probably a market for cross-platform applications that
can do much more than a widget, but less than a full-blown desktop
application. How big it is remains to be seen.
As Forrester Research has pointed out in a briefing paper, Rich
Internet Apps Move Beyond The Browser, developers now have a wide
range of options.
These start with the thin-client HTML-based approach, and go
through browser-based, player-based and client-based applications,
before reaching full fat-client applications. Or, of course, vice
versa.
They all have their pros and cons. The main thing is to pick the
right tool for the job.