Comments on: Ajax gives software a fresh look
Messaging company Zimbra is one of several companies betting that Ajax-style Web development will shake up the PC software market.
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1. AJAX is based on the XMLHttpRequest object, an ActiveX component invented by none other than the propietary king, Microsoft. I believe, however, that FireFox now has a compatible version of it own of this component.
2. Could this technology be used to exploit the consumer? The idea of subscription based software rather than a one time license has been on the minds of companies for years. On this model, you wouldn't buy software and install it, you would subscribe to it and use it over the Web, meaning the need for constant connection to the Net (and therefore exposing yourself inncecesarily to viruses, hackers) and also it would mean that if the software server is not available (which happens often enough with some of MS services) you can't use the software. It could also mean that a terrorist attack capable of taking down the Web's backbone servers (the top level domain servers for example) would not only stop the Internet, but also all companies "subscribed" to the software would be unable to work, resulting in millions in losses. Of course, that's a worst case scenario.
The idea that subscription based software is now possible is not very appealing. The consumer is locked into paying monthly fees for the use of a program. This is a new way for companies to extract more money from consumers. When will consumers and end users take a stand against this abuse?
1. Mozilla's XMLHTTPRequest object is almost identical to Microsoft's XMLHTTP ActiveX object, so AJAX apps can run the same in either browser if coded properly. Since Mozilla implemented it and FireFox's market share has grown so rapidly it is now possible to build true rich internet applications (AJAX-Style) that are cross-browser. I'm sure Safari and others will come around soon, but MS doesn't hold the monopoly anymore.
2. Just because an application is web based and accessed through a web browser doesn't mean companies have to pay a monthly fee to a given vendor or are dependant on them. There are still many cost efficiencies to be gained by running web apps and an enterprise can choose to manage their own servers, install the software once and allow users to access the app through a web browser. The app could be accessed over the internet, or LAN or WAN. So going so far as to say AJAX apps make us more vulnerable to terrorist attacks is quite sensational IMHO.
I think AJAX will change the way people use and think about web apps as a business tool.
I'd say the hurdles are lack of offline functionality and poor development tools. A component based model may help, but we still need better testing tools and JS IDEs.
My 2 cents.
Andre Charland
eBusiness Applications
AJAX Components for JAVA and .Net
1. AJAX is based on the XMLHttpRequest object, an ActiveX component invented by none other than the propietary king, Microsoft. I believe, however, that FireFox now has a compatible version of it own of this component.
2. Could this technology be used to exploit the consumer? The idea of subscription based software rather than a one time license has been on the minds of companies for years. On this model, you wouldn't buy software and install it, you would subscribe to it and use it over the Web, meaning the need for constant connection to the Net (and therefore exposing yourself inncecesarily to viruses, hackers) and also it would mean that if the software server is not available (which happens often enough with some of MS services) you can't use the software. It could also mean that a terrorist attack capable of taking down the Web's backbone servers (the top level domain servers for example) would not only stop the Internet, but also all companies "subscribed" to the software would be unable to work, resulting in millions in losses. Of course, that's a worst case scenario.
The idea that subscription based software is now possible is not very appealing. The consumer is locked into paying monthly fees for the use of a program. This is a new way for companies to extract more money from consumers. When will consumers and end users take a stand against this abuse?
1. Mozilla's XMLHTTPRequest object is almost identical to Microsoft's XMLHTTP ActiveX object, so AJAX apps can run the same in either browser if coded properly. Since Mozilla implemented it and FireFox's market share has grown so rapidly it is now possible to build true rich internet applications (AJAX-Style) that are cross-browser. I'm sure Safari and others will come around soon, but MS doesn't hold the monopoly anymore.
2. Just because an application is web based and accessed through a web browser doesn't mean companies have to pay a monthly fee to a given vendor or are dependant on them. There are still many cost efficiencies to be gained by running web apps and an enterprise can choose to manage their own servers, install the software once and allow users to access the app through a web browser. The app could be accessed over the internet, or LAN or WAN. So going so far as to say AJAX apps make us more vulnerable to terrorist attacks is quite sensational IMHO.
I think AJAX will change the way people use and think about web apps as a business tool.
I'd say the hurdles are lack of offline functionality and poor development tools. A component based model may help, but we still need better testing tools and JS IDEs.
My 2 cents.
Andre Charland
eBusiness Applications
AJAX Components for JAVA and .Net
Example: http://roomity.com is web2.0.
.V
Example: http://roomity.com is web2.0.
.V
Moving Buttons has nothing to do with AJAX. This is possible because of the use of JavaScript and CSS, also often described as DHTML.
Also I'm pretty shure Google Maps does NOT use AJAX - they are using only XMLHttpRequest which does NOT support asynchronic communication: the client sends a request and gets an answer.
Feel free to correct me ;)
Links:
http://www.adaptivepath.com/publications/essays/archives/000385.php
http://news.com.com/Will+AJAX+help+Google+clean+up/2100-1032_3-5621010.html
Martin LaMonica
CNET News.com
This is how the internet is supposed to work.
but it brought to mind that there needs to be more source info given.... don't get me wrong, C/Net does a great job giving interactive links, though most are other C/Net stories, what I am referring to is the same thing we learned when we first wrote a research paper, "document EVERYTHING"
a small side box that gives all the links that were used in preparation of the story (and especially the links used to verify anything the lawyers say to verify) conversations used to verify and printed references(do they still have those?) would assist informed readers to stay informed and even anonymous sources could be lumped into "private conversations"
I'm not requesting the reporter reveal secret sources that could dry up if names were mentioned. But responsible reporters always verify their facts. I'm just asking to allow the readers to also verify the facts as easily as possible.
Thanks,
Ike Love
Moving Buttons has nothing to do with AJAX. This is possible because of the use of JavaScript and CSS, also often described as DHTML.
Also I'm pretty shure Google Maps does NOT use AJAX - they are using only XMLHttpRequest which does NOT support asynchronic communication: the client sends a request and gets an answer.
Feel free to correct me ;)
Links:
http://www.adaptivepath.com/publications/essays/archives/000385.php
http://news.com.com/Will+AJAX+help+Google+clean+up/2100-1032_3-5621010.html
Martin LaMonica
CNET News.com
This is how the internet is supposed to work.
but it brought to mind that there needs to be more source info given.... don't get me wrong, C/Net does a great job giving interactive links, though most are other C/Net stories, what I am referring to is the same thing we learned when we first wrote a research paper, "document EVERYTHING"
a small side box that gives all the links that were used in preparation of the story (and especially the links used to verify anything the lawyers say to verify) conversations used to verify and printed references(do they still have those?) would assist informed readers to stay informed and even anonymous sources could be lumped into "private conversations"
I'm not requesting the reporter reveal secret sources that could dry up if names were mentioned. But responsible reporters always verify their facts. I'm just asking to allow the readers to also verify the facts as easily as possible.
Thanks,
Ike Love
"Bill of Rights
Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."
Are there any explanations as to why post ( re: The NewsForge Article - with views about OS/2 vs Windows 95 during the 90's) in relation to your article appears to have been removed?
"Bill of Rights
Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."
Are there any explanations as to why post ( re: The NewsForge Article - with views about OS/2 vs Windows 95 during the 90's) in relation to your article appears to have been removed?
http://trends.newsforge.com/trends/05/10/01/1548246.shtml?tid=29
a part of which reads as follows; "Even worse, Windows arch-enemy at the time, the dreaded OS/2, showed major performance gains when running on the Pentium Pro. Not to worry, in one tiny corner of cyberspace, a corner thick with journalists and analysts alike, Richard Shupak of MS Research stepped up to do battle with the truth.
Shupak claimed that Windows 95 was no less 32-bit than OS/2, and therefore there had to be some other explanation as to why Windows 95 ran slower on a Pentium Pro while OS/2 ran faster. As evidence, he cited the total lines of code in each OS, and the total lines of code that were 16 bit. Indeed, these figures showed Windows 95 to be more of a 32-bit OS than OS/2. Left at that, it was a perfect deception, with facts to back it up, while the truth of the situation was left harpooned on the beach like a dying whale.
As shrewd and cunning as Shupak's lies were, they were not quite good enough. IBM's Colin Powell pointed out the fallacy in the tale. Since the entire OS is never loaded in memory at any one time, the statistics quipped by Shupak were meaningless. What mattered, Powell noted, was the mix of 16-bit versus 32-bit code actually running in the machine at any given moment. And on that basis, it was the Pentium Pro who was the final arbiter, the blind justice, the even-handed Solomon: and it decreed time after time, application after application, that OS/2 rocked and Windows 95 sucked. Ergo, not only had MS been lying for years about its "all new, all 32-bit" OS, they were piling on more lies to cover up their previous disconnects with the truth.
Now fast forward ten years. Let's talk about the new DVD formats, and the wrestling match for mind-share between the Blu-Ray Disc (BD) preferred by Sony and Toshiba's HD DVD. MS and Intel back HD DVD, and they recently stepped up to explain why. As The Register points out in a recent story on the subject, the fact that Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 will be making use of their choice makes it all a little bit more personal."
Taken from this article about AJAX which reads; "Over the years, desktop applications tied to a specific operating system have become entrenched as the main way to work on a computer. AJAX, a set of development techniques standardized over the past eight years, could change all that by bringing more sophisticated interfaces to Web applications. With that, backers are hoping it can open a crack in the dominance of desktop software like Microsoft's Office, the undisputed market leader".
Against these backgrounds and ensuing developments (and, with broad support the "OpenDocument" format) one wonders what the true landscape in the media, information technology... arena will be?
http://trends.newsforge.com/trends/05/10/01/1548246.shtml?tid=29
a part of which reads as follows; "Even worse, Windows arch-enemy at the time, the dreaded OS/2, showed major performance gains when running on the Pentium Pro. Not to worry, in one tiny corner of cyberspace, a corner thick with journalists and analysts alike, Richard Shupak of MS Research stepped up to do battle with the truth.
Shupak claimed that Windows 95 was no less 32-bit than OS/2, and therefore there had to be some other explanation as to why Windows 95 ran slower on a Pentium Pro while OS/2 ran faster. As evidence, he cited the total lines of code in each OS, and the total lines of code that were 16 bit. Indeed, these figures showed Windows 95 to be more of a 32-bit OS than OS/2. Left at that, it was a perfect deception, with facts to back it up, while the truth of the situation was left harpooned on the beach like a dying whale.
As shrewd and cunning as Shupak's lies were, they were not quite good enough. IBM's Colin Powell pointed out the fallacy in the tale. Since the entire OS is never loaded in memory at any one time, the statistics quipped by Shupak were meaningless. What mattered, Powell noted, was the mix of 16-bit versus 32-bit code actually running in the machine at any given moment. And on that basis, it was the Pentium Pro who was the final arbiter, the blind justice, the even-handed Solomon: and it decreed time after time, application after application, that OS/2 rocked and Windows 95 sucked. Ergo, not only had MS been lying for years about its "all new, all 32-bit" OS, they were piling on more lies to cover up their previous disconnects with the truth.
Now fast forward ten years. Let's talk about the new DVD formats, and the wrestling match for mind-share between the Blu-Ray Disc (BD) preferred by Sony and Toshiba's HD DVD. MS and Intel back HD DVD, and they recently stepped up to explain why. As The Register points out in a recent story on the subject, the fact that Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 will be making use of their choice makes it all a little bit more personal."
Taken from this article about AJAX which reads; "Over the years, desktop applications tied to a specific operating system have become entrenched as the main way to work on a computer. AJAX, a set of development techniques standardized over the past eight years, could change all that by bringing more sophisticated interfaces to Web applications. With that, backers are hoping it can open a crack in the dominance of desktop software like Microsoft's Office, the undisputed market leader".
Against these backgrounds and ensuing developments (and, with broad support the "OpenDocument" format) one wonders what the true landscape in the media, information technology... arena will be?
Microsoft's grip
Although the idea of a Web-based alternative to Microsoft Office may sound threatening to the software giant, the company's products are deeply entrenched, particularly in the corporate market. The training costs associated with replacing Office alone make switching away from it very unlikely, said Joe Drouin, global chief information officer at TRW Automotive.
"The Windows-Office platform has become second nature to people," Drouin said. "There would have to be an amazingly compelling business case to convince me to go out and retrain 24,000 people on an all-new desktop environment, an all-new office environment and an all-new way of working."
[/Quote]
The compeling business case is money. Training your 24,000 users to use an application via a browser maybe $500 ea (worst case).
Smaller, cheaper, less loaded "personal computers for 24,000 users. Less software to purchase. Less by more than $500 per users ea (worst case). And these savings accumulate and grow with each hardware and software upgrade or purchase.
The result is a huge long term net savings to the business. Perhaps they could use it to hire a smarter CIO.
Microsoft's grip
Although the idea of a Web-based alternative to Microsoft Office may sound threatening to the software giant, the company's products are deeply entrenched, particularly in the corporate market. The training costs associated with replacing Office alone make switching away from it very unlikely, said Joe Drouin, global chief information officer at TRW Automotive.
"The Windows-Office platform has become second nature to people," Drouin said. "There would have to be an amazingly compelling business case to convince me to go out and retrain 24,000 people on an all-new desktop environment, an all-new office environment and an all-new way of working."
[/Quote]
The compeling business case is money. Training your 24,000 users to use an application via a browser maybe $500 ea (worst case).
Smaller, cheaper, less loaded "personal computers for 24,000 users. Less software to purchase. Less by more than $500 per users ea (worst case). And these savings accumulate and grow with each hardware and software upgrade or purchase.
The result is a huge long term net savings to the business. Perhaps they could use it to hire a smarter CIO.
Along with meebo and yahoo mail(oddpost was AJAX), here is Tilika - an AJAX powered online shared calendaring and social networking tool I wrote that does a fair fraction of what MS Outlook does. Nothing to download and free.
Many of these tools are a bit disparate rather than existing under one umbrella but then perhaps that's how they will evolve. No one company owns everything. AJAX certainly has a future.
- Not tomorrow but soon...
- by October 8, 2005 8:33 AM PDT
- IT tends to be a bit giddy in proclaiming its next great revolution (net computers) etc but AJAX exists today in real applications, not just in marketing literature. And it isnt rocket science.
- Like this Reply to this comment
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Showing 1 of 2 pages (61 Comments)Along with meebo and yahoo mail(oddpost was AJAX), here is Tilika - an AJAX powered online shared calendaring and social networking tool I wrote that does a fair fraction of what MS Outlook does. Nothing to download and free.
Many of these tools are a bit disparate rather than existing under one umbrella but then perhaps that's how they will evolve. No one company owns everything. AJAX certainly has a future.