Microsoft's Web development technology may have tough time gaining on Flash
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9077660&intsrc=hm_list
Showing posts with label Microsoft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Microsoft. Show all posts
Monday, May 5, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
PUCIT Lectures - Free for all
Kindly visit http://lectures.pucit.edu.pk/
You can download different lecture contents about programming and other educational stuff.
Thanks
You can download different lecture contents about programming and other educational stuff.
Thanks
Microsoft Education Plan
Here is some links of MICROSOFT WINDOWS LIVE visit it, YOu'll find all new services and Microsoft Education Plan.
http://get.live.com/edu http://student-partners.com/
http://www.microsoft.com/uk/academia/students/student-partners/default.mspx
http://get.live.com/edu/schools http://www.imagine-wl.com/Education/en-US/
http://research.microsoft.com/aboutmsr/labs/asia/default.aspx
ABOUT THE IMAGINE CUP. What is the Imagine Cup? UNESCO Endorsement
http://imaginecup.com/ http://get.live.com/mail/ms_liveMail_demo
Hope this helps.
Thanks
http://get.live.com/edu http://student-partners.com/
http://www.microsoft.com/uk/academia/students/student-partners/default.mspx
http://get.live.com/edu/schools http://www.imagine-wl.com/Education/en-US/
http://research.microsoft.com/aboutmsr/labs/asia/default.aspx
ABOUT THE IMAGINE CUP. What is the Imagine Cup? UNESCO Endorsement
http://imaginecup.com/ http://get.live.com/mail/ms_liveMail_demo
Hope this helps.
Thanks
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Next Stop, Elastic Architecture !!
Very good article, easy and simple to understand as well. So what i understood is
Elastic computing is all about creating a virutal server, process stuff, and when that server is not needed, shut it down. The point is all has to be done by using an API, that is why that server is called a virtual server. Great concept.
Now after reading that article first question came into my mind was : What does it mean by a SERVER ?
Isn't this concept is same as allocating some memory when you need that by using new() keyword or by anyother means which is supported by the language, use that memory and deallocate when it is not required any more. But i think this is something different.
The difference is :-
Virtual Sever should behave like a SEVER means :-
Get the Memory +Processing Power + Take part in clustring + Perform load balancing + may have some kind of fail safe mechnism + anything that you can imagine with a SERVER
ALL BY USING APIs.
But i think the capability of those VIRTUAL SERVERS will be limited to the capability of available hardware.
Your thought / Comments are welcome.
Amrat Nandlal
Elastic computing is all about creating a virutal server, process stuff, and when that server is not needed, shut it down. The point is all has to be done by using an API, that is why that server is called a virtual server. Great concept.
Now after reading that article first question came into my mind was : What does it mean by a SERVER ?
Isn't this concept is same as allocating some memory when you need that by using new() keyword or by anyother means which is supported by the language, use that memory and deallocate when it is not required any more. But i think this is something different.
The difference is :-
Virtual Sever should behave like a SEVER means :-
Get the Memory +Processing Power + Take part in clustring + Perform load balancing + may have some kind of fail safe mechnism + anything that you can imagine with a SERVER
ALL BY USING APIs.
But i think the capability of those VIRTUAL SERVERS will be limited to the capability of available hardware.
Your thought / Comments are welcome.
Amrat Nandlal
Microsoft looks to remake itself!!
Stock Spotlight: Software giant looks to regain glory days of growth by becoming competitive in booming markets like online advertising and gaming.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In an era where the Web is king, Microsoft is no longer regarded as a growth stock. But if the company's bets on new businesses pan out, it could become one again.
Microsoft (Charts, Fortune 500) has has had to play catch-up in many areas - video games, MP3 players and online advertising - with varying degrees of success.
The company's new "Halo 3" game and Xbox console are increasingly important for Microsoft. The entertainment and devices division makes up 12 percent of Microsoft's revenue and is the company's fastest growing, with revenues increasing 28 percent in fiscal 2007, compared to overall sales growth of 15 percent.
But the Zune MP3 player, which is also part of the entertainment and devices division, failed to capture the attention of the iPod generation.
Microsoft has also seen faced legal setbacks in Europe. The recent court ruling upholding the European Union's order to offer a version of its Windows operating system without its Windows Media Player software is a major blow to the company since it bundles features with Windows.
Google and Microsoft go to Washington
Of course, Microsoft is still a corporate giant - with annual revenues of more than $50 billion and cash on hand of more than $20 billion. Its core businesses are doing well, thanks to the release of Vista, its latest operating system, and a new version of the Office suite of tools.
But even in these established businesses, Microsoft faces challenges. Office, in particular, faces increased competition from Google and IBM.
Although Microsoft has the cash to muscle its way into competitive new growth areas, it remains to be seen whether it really can become a growth stock again.
The emperor's new clicks
Microsoft has looked mainly toward online advertising and gaming to invigorate its sales and earnings growth.
Microsoft is a distant third in the lucrative business of online search. According to the most recent rankings from Web tracking firm comScore, Microsoft's market share in search was just 11.3 percent in August compared to 56.5 percent for Google (Charts, Fortune 500) and 23.3 percent for Yahoo (Charts, Fortune 500).
Earlier this year, Microsoft was in talks to buy DoubleClick, a top digital marketing company, but was outmaneuvered by Google, which agreed to purchase the company for $3.1 billion in April.
Not to be outdone, Microsoft then paid $6 billion to buy another top digital marketer, Seattle-based aQuantive, in May. It was the largest acquisition in the company's history.
Former aQuantive CEO Brian McAndrews has been tapped to run the engineering section of Microsoft's online advertising business, a move that Wall Street hailed.
Microsoft upgrades search engine
"The aQuantive acquisition gives (Microsoft) a team of people who really understand the business," said Sid Parakh, an analyst with McAdams Wright Ragen.
Microsoft also announced Thursday that it had launched an improved version of its Live Search in order to better take on Google. The redesigned search engine includes a significant increase in the number of Web pages indexed and an expansion of Live Search's rich answers" section, which provides responses to specific questions.
On the gaming side, the company has brought in new talent from outside of Microsoft to invigorate the division, which faces a tough battle from Nintendo and Sony. Microsoft hired former Electronic Arts executive Don Mattrick in February as an advisor to its video game group and appointed him head of it in July.
Halo 3 to Nintendo Wii: Check your rearview mirror
This week it launched "Halo 3", which amassed pre-orders of 1 million copies. Goldman Sachs analyst Sarah Friar wrote in a research report that strong demand for the game could contribute $50 million or more to the company's sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2008, which ends in September.
Microsoft has invested heavily in the division, anticipating long-term gaming trends as far as 10 years out. But the investments have not panned out for Microsoft's bottom line yet. The entertainment and devices division, despite its impressive sales growth, posted an operating loss of $1.9 billion in fiscal 2007.
Computers still at the core
Although growth has been slower for core products like Microsoft Windows and Office 2007, this year saw substantial revenue gains in both divisions because of their recent releases. Sales in the Windows division climbed 14 percent to the fiscal year ending June 30, while sales of Office were up 13 percent.
"The PC market has done tremendously well this year, so you're seeing that flow through Microsoft's numbers," said Morningstar analyst Toan Tran. "Vista is tracking toward expectations and Office 2007 is doing better than I thought it would."
The planned 2008 release of Windows Server should speed adoption of Vista, Tran believes, because executives like to upgrade individual computers and servers at the same time.
In addition, Microsoft is cracking down more aggressively on global piracy, which could spur the sale of more Windows and Office licenses. The company also plans to offer more premium editions of its software for clients who need for features, another possible revenue boost.
But several big-name companies have developed free software that could threaten Microsoft's stranglehold on the office software market.
Google Docs, the free Web-based offering from the search giant, has basic word processing and spreadsheet functions and allows easy sharing of documents. IBM (Charts, Fortune 500) is relaunching spreadsheet software Lotus Symphony as a free download, using the new Open Document Format standard, a favorite of governments.
"These new software packages are definitely more of a long-term threat - something that could happen five to seven years from now," said Tran. "Currently the online suites don't have the level of features that someone working in a business environment would need."
Can Microsoft ever be a growth stock again?
If Microsoft wants its stock to head significantly higher, analysts said the company is going to have to get a stronger foothold in markets like advertising and gaming.
Fortunately for investors, Microsoft pays a dividend that yields 1.5 percent, a healthy yield for a tech company. And Wall Street has a positive opinion of the company, with 29 of 38 analysts surveyed by Thomson One giving it at least a "buy" rating.
The stock also looks reasonably valued, trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 17.1, a discount to software rivals Oracle (Charts, Fortune 500) and SAP (Charts), which trade at 17.3 and 25.4 times next year's earnings estimates respectively.
Microsoft is more expensive than IBM, which trades at 15.8 times earnings estimates. But the slower-growth IBM is more than just a software company since it also has big hardware and services divisions.
Goldman Sachs' Friar has a 12-month price target of $37 on the company, which implies about 25 percent upside to its current price.
And Microsoft is starting to show some signs of healthier growth again. According to Thomson One, analysts expect earnings to increase 16 percent to $1.73 per share in fiscal 2008, which ends next June, and that sales will increase 12 percent to $57.3 billion.
"Microsoft faces a number of challenges, but we think the stock is a below-average-risk investment given the firm's dominant position in its major markets," wrote Tran.
It's no secret that the company is not going to return to its peak growth levels, but it still may have prosperous days ahead of it.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In an era where the Web is king, Microsoft is no longer regarded as a growth stock. But if the company's bets on new businesses pan out, it could become one again.
Microsoft (Charts, Fortune 500) has has had to play catch-up in many areas - video games, MP3 players and online advertising - with varying degrees of success.
The company's new "Halo 3" game and Xbox console are increasingly important for Microsoft. The entertainment and devices division makes up 12 percent of Microsoft's revenue and is the company's fastest growing, with revenues increasing 28 percent in fiscal 2007, compared to overall sales growth of 15 percent.
But the Zune MP3 player, which is also part of the entertainment and devices division, failed to capture the attention of the iPod generation.
Microsoft has also seen faced legal setbacks in Europe. The recent court ruling upholding the European Union's order to offer a version of its Windows operating system without its Windows Media Player software is a major blow to the company since it bundles features with Windows.
Google and Microsoft go to Washington
Of course, Microsoft is still a corporate giant - with annual revenues of more than $50 billion and cash on hand of more than $20 billion. Its core businesses are doing well, thanks to the release of Vista, its latest operating system, and a new version of the Office suite of tools.
But even in these established businesses, Microsoft faces challenges. Office, in particular, faces increased competition from Google and IBM.
Although Microsoft has the cash to muscle its way into competitive new growth areas, it remains to be seen whether it really can become a growth stock again.
The emperor's new clicks
Microsoft has looked mainly toward online advertising and gaming to invigorate its sales and earnings growth.
Microsoft is a distant third in the lucrative business of online search. According to the most recent rankings from Web tracking firm comScore, Microsoft's market share in search was just 11.3 percent in August compared to 56.5 percent for Google (Charts, Fortune 500) and 23.3 percent for Yahoo (Charts, Fortune 500).
Earlier this year, Microsoft was in talks to buy DoubleClick, a top digital marketing company, but was outmaneuvered by Google, which agreed to purchase the company for $3.1 billion in April.
Not to be outdone, Microsoft then paid $6 billion to buy another top digital marketer, Seattle-based aQuantive, in May. It was the largest acquisition in the company's history.
Former aQuantive CEO Brian McAndrews has been tapped to run the engineering section of Microsoft's online advertising business, a move that Wall Street hailed.
Microsoft upgrades search engine
"The aQuantive acquisition gives (Microsoft) a team of people who really understand the business," said Sid Parakh, an analyst with McAdams Wright Ragen.
Microsoft also announced Thursday that it had launched an improved version of its Live Search in order to better take on Google. The redesigned search engine includes a significant increase in the number of Web pages indexed and an expansion of Live Search's rich answers" section, which provides responses to specific questions.
On the gaming side, the company has brought in new talent from outside of Microsoft to invigorate the division, which faces a tough battle from Nintendo and Sony. Microsoft hired former Electronic Arts executive Don Mattrick in February as an advisor to its video game group and appointed him head of it in July.
Halo 3 to Nintendo Wii: Check your rearview mirror
This week it launched "Halo 3", which amassed pre-orders of 1 million copies. Goldman Sachs analyst Sarah Friar wrote in a research report that strong demand for the game could contribute $50 million or more to the company's sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2008, which ends in September.
Microsoft has invested heavily in the division, anticipating long-term gaming trends as far as 10 years out. But the investments have not panned out for Microsoft's bottom line yet. The entertainment and devices division, despite its impressive sales growth, posted an operating loss of $1.9 billion in fiscal 2007.
Computers still at the core
Although growth has been slower for core products like Microsoft Windows and Office 2007, this year saw substantial revenue gains in both divisions because of their recent releases. Sales in the Windows division climbed 14 percent to the fiscal year ending June 30, while sales of Office were up 13 percent.
"The PC market has done tremendously well this year, so you're seeing that flow through Microsoft's numbers," said Morningstar analyst Toan Tran. "Vista is tracking toward expectations and Office 2007 is doing better than I thought it would."
The planned 2008 release of Windows Server should speed adoption of Vista, Tran believes, because executives like to upgrade individual computers and servers at the same time.
In addition, Microsoft is cracking down more aggressively on global piracy, which could spur the sale of more Windows and Office licenses. The company also plans to offer more premium editions of its software for clients who need for features, another possible revenue boost.
But several big-name companies have developed free software that could threaten Microsoft's stranglehold on the office software market.
Google Docs, the free Web-based offering from the search giant, has basic word processing and spreadsheet functions and allows easy sharing of documents. IBM (Charts, Fortune 500) is relaunching spreadsheet software Lotus Symphony as a free download, using the new Open Document Format standard, a favorite of governments.
"These new software packages are definitely more of a long-term threat - something that could happen five to seven years from now," said Tran. "Currently the online suites don't have the level of features that someone working in a business environment would need."
Can Microsoft ever be a growth stock again?
If Microsoft wants its stock to head significantly higher, analysts said the company is going to have to get a stronger foothold in markets like advertising and gaming.
Fortunately for investors, Microsoft pays a dividend that yields 1.5 percent, a healthy yield for a tech company. And Wall Street has a positive opinion of the company, with 29 of 38 analysts surveyed by Thomson One giving it at least a "buy" rating.
The stock also looks reasonably valued, trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 17.1, a discount to software rivals Oracle (Charts, Fortune 500) and SAP (Charts), which trade at 17.3 and 25.4 times next year's earnings estimates respectively.
Microsoft is more expensive than IBM, which trades at 15.8 times earnings estimates. But the slower-growth IBM is more than just a software company since it also has big hardware and services divisions.
Goldman Sachs' Friar has a 12-month price target of $37 on the company, which implies about 25 percent upside to its current price.
And Microsoft is starting to show some signs of healthier growth again. According to Thomson One, analysts expect earnings to increase 16 percent to $1.73 per share in fiscal 2008, which ends next June, and that sales will increase 12 percent to $57.3 billion.
"Microsoft faces a number of challenges, but we think the stock is a below-average-risk investment given the firm's dominant position in its major markets," wrote Tran.
It's no secret that the company is not going to return to its peak growth levels, but it still may have prosperous days ahead of it.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Windows Service Pack Craze!!! Now a XP SP3 Update
With the news of Vista Servic Pack 1 being released First Quarter 2008, and the beta possibly dropping in 2 weeks, Microsoft has quietly said Windows XP Service Pack 3 will be made available for download within the next 2 weeks!! Everyone got a taste of it few weeks ago when someone leaked a copy of it, but it look as if MS is gonna do this officially! Here is the news excerpt from Softpedia News, and I quote...........
"Now Microsoft has confirmed that the full beta of the service pack for Windows Vista will be available for download via Connect to some 10,000 to 15,000 testers. Additionally, the Redmond company also announced that the first actual beta of Windows XP SP3 will be delivered to all TechNet and Microsoft Developer Network subscribers. The third refresh for XP is planned for limited availability by mid September. At this point in time, Microsoft failed to reveal if a public beta of the service pack will be offered to users, in a manner similar to that of Windows Vista SP1.
However, unlike Vista SP1 which only now had its final availability date confirmed for the first quarter of 2008, Windows XP SP3 was scheduled all along for the first half of the coming year. In mid July, Microsoft delivered to a select pool of testers Windows XP SP3 pre-beta build 5.1.2600.3180 (xpsp.070718-2058). The version was subsequently leaked to peer-to-peer file sharing networks. Microsoft emphasized that the third service pack for Windows XP, as well as the first service pack for Windows Vista, would not impact considerably the users’ experience on each of the two operating systems. Still, XP SP3 is long overdue as Microsoft delayed the product from 2006, to 2007 and then to 2008. The last refresh, for Windows XP, SP2 was made available back in 2004."
"Now Microsoft has confirmed that the full beta of the service pack for Windows Vista will be available for download via Connect to some 10,000 to 15,000 testers. Additionally, the Redmond company also announced that the first actual beta of Windows XP SP3 will be delivered to all TechNet and Microsoft Developer Network subscribers. The third refresh for XP is planned for limited availability by mid September. At this point in time, Microsoft failed to reveal if a public beta of the service pack will be offered to users, in a manner similar to that of Windows Vista SP1.
However, unlike Vista SP1 which only now had its final availability date confirmed for the first quarter of 2008, Windows XP SP3 was scheduled all along for the first half of the coming year. In mid July, Microsoft delivered to a select pool of testers Windows XP SP3 pre-beta build 5.1.2600.3180 (xpsp.070718-2058). The version was subsequently leaked to peer-to-peer file sharing networks. Microsoft emphasized that the third service pack for Windows XP, as well as the first service pack for Windows Vista, would not impact considerably the users’ experience on each of the two operating systems. Still, XP SP3 is long overdue as Microsoft delayed the product from 2006, to 2007 and then to 2008. The last refresh, for Windows XP, SP2 was made available back in 2004."
Microsoft working on Mind-Reading Software
Microsoft researchers are working on a MIND-READING SYSTEM -- hardware and software that can "interface directly with the human brain." The company's R&D department has figured out how to use a "low-cost electroencephalograph" for "detecting specific forms of brain activity." Research papers associated with the project say that "knowing the state of the user as well as the tasks they are performing may provide key information that would allow us to design context sensitive systems that adapt themselves to optimally support the state of the user." The technology might also "know the precise intention of a user who searches for an ambiguous term."
Black screen of darkness to haunt Vista pirates
September 11, 2007 (Computerworld Australia) Microsoft Windows' infamous "blue screen of death" has become synonymous with an operating system crash or freeze, but that's nothing compared with what users of pirated copies of Vista worldwide can expect from now -- a black screen of darkness.
In an e-mail to a large Windows Vista distributor titled "Pirated Vista -- A darkness descends!" -- a local Microsoft representative made it quite clear what Vista pirates can expect to happen to their unlicensed installations.
A copy of this e-mail was obtained by Computerworld.
"Good afternoon, as of this week, Microsoft has activated a function in Vista called 'Reduced Functionality.' This is a specific function in Vista that effectively disables nongenuine copies of Windows. Therefore anyone who has a pirated copy of Vista will experience:
A black screen after one hour of browsing
No start menu or task bar
No desktop
Please communicate this antipiracy initiative from Microsoft to your resellers -- note this function has only just been activated in Vista worldwide and therefore any issues with nongenuine versions will start to arise from now onward."
Microsoft's new tough antipiracy move also proves the company still controls its software releases with an iron fist, but it marks the first global use of heavy-handed tactics for pirated copies of Windows.
The e-mail message also included what resembled an advertisement of the new antipiracy initiative.
Titled "Don't let this happen to your customers," the advertisement indicates nongenuine copies of Windows Vista will lose access to key features, have limited access to updates, and thus risk attack from viruses, malware and spyware.
"If Windows Vista is not activated with a genuine product key, your customers will experience reduced functionality," according to the ad. "The blocking of nongenuine product keys is an ongoing process, not a one-time event. To help protect honest partners and fight piracy, Microsoft will continue to block product keys that are determined to be pirated, stolen or otherwise deemed nongenuine."
The ad concludes with "Don't risk it!" and "make sure your customers always get genuine Windows Vista preinstalled."
In an e-mail to a large Windows Vista distributor titled "Pirated Vista -- A darkness descends!" -- a local Microsoft representative made it quite clear what Vista pirates can expect to happen to their unlicensed installations.
A copy of this e-mail was obtained by Computerworld.
"Good afternoon, as of this week, Microsoft has activated a function in Vista called 'Reduced Functionality.' This is a specific function in Vista that effectively disables nongenuine copies of Windows. Therefore anyone who has a pirated copy of Vista will experience:
A black screen after one hour of browsing
No start menu or task bar
No desktop
Please communicate this antipiracy initiative from Microsoft to your resellers -- note this function has only just been activated in Vista worldwide and therefore any issues with nongenuine versions will start to arise from now onward."
Microsoft's new tough antipiracy move also proves the company still controls its software releases with an iron fist, but it marks the first global use of heavy-handed tactics for pirated copies of Windows.
The e-mail message also included what resembled an advertisement of the new antipiracy initiative.
Titled "Don't let this happen to your customers," the advertisement indicates nongenuine copies of Windows Vista will lose access to key features, have limited access to updates, and thus risk attack from viruses, malware and spyware.
"If Windows Vista is not activated with a genuine product key, your customers will experience reduced functionality," according to the ad. "The blocking of nongenuine product keys is an ongoing process, not a one-time event. To help protect honest partners and fight piracy, Microsoft will continue to block product keys that are determined to be pirated, stolen or otherwise deemed nongenuine."
The ad concludes with "Don't risk it!" and "make sure your customers always get genuine Windows Vista preinstalled."
10 things you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight
Crafting a Web strategy is important for any thriving business. However, implementing that strategy with rich Internet applications (RIA) is not always as easy as it should be. To ease that pain, Microsoft recently announced Silverlight, a cross-platform, cross-browser plug-in for Web application developers. The plug-in, currently available as a "Release Candidate" (which for all intents and purposes means it's released now), enables rich application development including media, interactivity and animation. The Silverlight plug-in currently works with Internet Explorer and Firefox Web browsers on Windows and with Firefox and Safari on Mac OS X.
I've been using Silverlight since I taught a course for internal Microsoft developers, shortly before the software's public unveiling as "WPF/E." I've written several books about Microsoft-based software development (such as Pragmatic ADO.NET [Addison-Wesley]), I co-wrote four Microsoft developer certification books, and I have invested quite a bit of time in examining the promises that the company is making for this "Flash killer." It's always hard to be critical of software that isn't fully released yet (for one thing, it's impossible to point out serious bugs since they may be addressed by the time you fire up the development tool), but the following reflects my professional and technical judgment based on several months of hands-on experience.
With the public release of Silverlight imminent, now is the right time to become familiar with Silverlight and how it might impact your Web application strategy. With so much Silverlight information available right now, it is difficult to distill what is important and what is hype. I'll do my best to lift the fog with these 10 things that you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight.
1. Silverlight Avoids Cross-Browser/OS Issues
For most development teams, developing a website that will work identically with the popular browsers of the day (including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Opera) is a difficult proposition. The problem is not simply the necessity for multiple code implementations but also exponentially large testing sets. As a developer creates matrices of browser versions and operating systems, the number of test beds needed becomes enormous.
Usually there are two ways that a development project addresses this: support only a small subset of Web browsers, or increase the number of quality assurance personnel.
In contrast, the Silverlight plug-in enables an identical development model regardless of user operating system and browser. Currently, two operating systems and three browsers are supported. Microsoft is promising to add support for the Opera browser on Windows and Mac. In addition, the Mono project has made tremendous strides in its Moonlight project, which intends to bring Silverlight to the Linux platform.
2. Silverlight 1.1 Is the Real Story
The recent Release Candidate of Silverlight 1.0 has many organizations considering whether they should start working with Silverlight. While Silverlight 1.0 has many important and interesting features, in reality most Silverlight adoption hangs on its anticipated 1.1 release.
The Silverlight 1.1 release (currently in an Alpha preview) is the first to support .NET in any appreciable way. This includes the basic .NET languages, C# and Visual Basic. In addition, according to Microsoft, Silverlight 1.1 will have .NET support for dynamic languages, such as Ruby, Python, dynamic Visual Basic and managed JScript. In my opinion, the important languages for Silverlight to support are C# and Visual Basic, as they allow current .NET developers to create interesting Silverlight applications. In the Silverlight 1.1 release, any .NET language should be supported, since what is actually delivered to the browser are .NET assemblies.
In contrast, Silverlight 1.0 only supports ECMA languages that are interpreted in the client. Silverlight 1.0 works well for existing Web developers who are already using client-side script for their work.
Silverlight 1.1 also supports a rich custom control model, which is important to ensure an integrated development experience. The Silverlight 1.0 experience is much less mature and is unlikely to get third parties interested in control development.
I've been using Silverlight since I taught a course for internal Microsoft developers, shortly before the software's public unveiling as "WPF/E." I've written several books about Microsoft-based software development (such as Pragmatic ADO.NET [Addison-Wesley]), I co-wrote four Microsoft developer certification books, and I have invested quite a bit of time in examining the promises that the company is making for this "Flash killer." It's always hard to be critical of software that isn't fully released yet (for one thing, it's impossible to point out serious bugs since they may be addressed by the time you fire up the development tool), but the following reflects my professional and technical judgment based on several months of hands-on experience.
With the public release of Silverlight imminent, now is the right time to become familiar with Silverlight and how it might impact your Web application strategy. With so much Silverlight information available right now, it is difficult to distill what is important and what is hype. I'll do my best to lift the fog with these 10 things that you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight.
1. Silverlight Avoids Cross-Browser/OS Issues
For most development teams, developing a website that will work identically with the popular browsers of the day (including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Opera) is a difficult proposition. The problem is not simply the necessity for multiple code implementations but also exponentially large testing sets. As a developer creates matrices of browser versions and operating systems, the number of test beds needed becomes enormous.
Usually there are two ways that a development project addresses this: support only a small subset of Web browsers, or increase the number of quality assurance personnel.
In contrast, the Silverlight plug-in enables an identical development model regardless of user operating system and browser. Currently, two operating systems and three browsers are supported. Microsoft is promising to add support for the Opera browser on Windows and Mac. In addition, the Mono project has made tremendous strides in its Moonlight project, which intends to bring Silverlight to the Linux platform.
2. Silverlight 1.1 Is the Real Story
The recent Release Candidate of Silverlight 1.0 has many organizations considering whether they should start working with Silverlight. While Silverlight 1.0 has many important and interesting features, in reality most Silverlight adoption hangs on its anticipated 1.1 release.
The Silverlight 1.1 release (currently in an Alpha preview) is the first to support .NET in any appreciable way. This includes the basic .NET languages, C# and Visual Basic. In addition, according to Microsoft, Silverlight 1.1 will have .NET support for dynamic languages, such as Ruby, Python, dynamic Visual Basic and managed JScript. In my opinion, the important languages for Silverlight to support are C# and Visual Basic, as they allow current .NET developers to create interesting Silverlight applications. In the Silverlight 1.1 release, any .NET language should be supported, since what is actually delivered to the browser are .NET assemblies.
In contrast, Silverlight 1.0 only supports ECMA languages that are interpreted in the client. Silverlight 1.0 works well for existing Web developers who are already using client-side script for their work.
Silverlight 1.1 also supports a rich custom control model, which is important to ensure an integrated development experience. The Silverlight 1.0 experience is much less mature and is unlikely to get third parties interested in control development.
GOood News:: Microsoft Space Available
Windows Live Spaces is here! It’s easy to create your own personal Web site.
http://spaces.live.com/signup.aspx
http://spaces.live.com/signup.aspx
Microsoft Expression Web (Final Key For Activation)
Microsoft Expression Web Final Key for Activation
DDWJC-VFGHJ-7GFK6-9QK3D-PFTHW
DDWJC-VFGHJ-7GFK6-9QK3D-PFTHW
Download Free Silverlight Book
http://rs165.rapidshare.com/files/58534005/OReilly.Essential.Silverlight.Sep.2007.pdf
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Microsoft Issues 10 Reasons Why Enterprises Shouldn't Use Google Apps
Up till now, Microsoft has been very quiet about the nascent Web Office threat from Google. But today, in response to the news that IT systems consultancy CapGemini has partnered with Google to sell Google Apps Premier Edition (GAPE) to enterprises, Microsoft issued an email listing 10 "top questions that enterprises should ask when considering the switch to GAPE." The questions read more like reasons why enterprises shouldn't choose Google Apps. This list was first published by Mary Jo Foley, who says it was an unsolicited email from a Microsoft "corporate spokesperson".
The 10 reasons make for fascinating reading - and show just how concerned Microsoft really is about not only Google Apps, but Web Office in general. Here is a copy of the email list:
“1. Google touts having enterprise level customers but how many “USERS” of their applications truly exist within the enterprise?
“2. Google has a history of releasing incomplete products, calling them beta software, and issuing updates on a “known only to Google” schedule – this flies in the face of what enterprises want and need in their technology partners – what is Google doing that indicates they are in lock step with customer needs?
“3. Google touts the low cost of their apps –not only price but the absence of need for hardware, storage or maintenance for Google Apps. BUT if GAPE is indeed a complement to MSFT Office, the costs actually become greater for a company as they now have two IT systems to run and manage and maintain. Doesn’t this result in increased complexity and increased costs?
“4. Google’s primary focus is on ad funded search. Their enterprise focus and now apps exist on the very fringe and in combination with other fringe services only account for 1% of the company’s revenue. What happens if Google executes poorly? Do they shut down given it will them in a minimal and short term way? Should customers trust that this won’t happen?
“5. Google’s apps only work if an enterprise has no power users, employees are always online, enterprises haven’t built custom Office apps – doesn’t this equal a very small % of global information workers today? –On a feature comparison basis, it’s not surprising that Microsoft has a huge lead.
“6. Google apps don’t have essential document creation features like support for headers, footers, tables of content, footnotes, etc. Additionally, while customers can collaborate on basic docs without the above noted features, to collaborate on detailed docs, a company must implement a two part process – work together on the basic doc, save it to Word or Excel and then send via email for final edits. Yes they have a $50 price tag, but with the inefficiencies created by just this one cycle, how much do GAPE really cost – and can you afford the fidelity loss?
“7. Enterprise companies have to constantly think about government regulations and standards – while Google can store a lot of data for enterprises on Google servers, there is no easy to use, automated way for enterprises to regularly delete data, issue a legal hold for specific docs or bring copies into the corp. What happens if a company needs to respond to government regulations bodies? Google touts 99.9% uptime for their apps but what few people realize that promise is for Gmail only. Equally alarming is the definition Google has for “downtime” – ten consecutive minutes of downtime. What happens if throughout the day Google is down 7 minutes each hour? What does 7 minutes each hour for a full work day that cost an enterprise?
“8. In the world of business, it is always on and always connected. As such, having access to technical support 24/7 is essential. If a company deploys Google Apps and there is a technical issue at 8pm PST, Sorry. Google’s tech support is open M-F 1AM-6PM PST – are these the new hours of global business? And if a customer’s “designated administrator” is not available (a requirement) does business just stop?
“9. Google says that enterprise customers use only 10% of the features in today’s productivity applications which implies that EVERYONE needs the SAME 10% of the feature when in fact it is very clear that in each company there are specific roles people play that demands access to specific information – how does Google’s generic strategy address role specific needs?
“10. With Google apps in perpetual beta and Google controlling when and if they rollout specific features and functionality, customers have minimal if any control over the timing of product rollouts and features – how do 1) I know how to strategically plan and train and 2) get the features and functionality I have specifically requested? How much money does not knowing cost?
“I invite you to speak with customers, partners and analysts who can validate Office’s business model.”
There's no doubt these are compelling reasons why an enterprise should choose Microsoft Office over Google Apps, at this point. But it's noticeable that the list doesn't mention the word "collaboration", which is probably the key benefit of Google Apps compared to MS Office.
Nor does Microsoft adequately rebut that Google Apps will be a complement to Microsoft Office (as CapsGemini and Google claimed yesterday). Microsoft says in point 3 that "the costs actually become greater for a company as they now have two IT systems to run and manage and maintain." But that doesn't address the features that Google Apps offers and how it might complement an enterprise's office software set-up.
What do you make of Microsoft's response? It certainly brings up some valid criticisms of Google Apps and Web Office, but then Google isn't claiming their product is a replacement of MS Office. Their stance is that it's a complement - and so in that respect this list by a Microsoft spokesperson is probably an over-reaction. It looks like someone in Redmond hit the panic button a bit too early.
The 10 reasons make for fascinating reading - and show just how concerned Microsoft really is about not only Google Apps, but Web Office in general. Here is a copy of the email list:
“1. Google touts having enterprise level customers but how many “USERS” of their applications truly exist within the enterprise?
“2. Google has a history of releasing incomplete products, calling them beta software, and issuing updates on a “known only to Google” schedule – this flies in the face of what enterprises want and need in their technology partners – what is Google doing that indicates they are in lock step with customer needs?
“3. Google touts the low cost of their apps –not only price but the absence of need for hardware, storage or maintenance for Google Apps. BUT if GAPE is indeed a complement to MSFT Office, the costs actually become greater for a company as they now have two IT systems to run and manage and maintain. Doesn’t this result in increased complexity and increased costs?
“4. Google’s primary focus is on ad funded search. Their enterprise focus and now apps exist on the very fringe and in combination with other fringe services only account for 1% of the company’s revenue. What happens if Google executes poorly? Do they shut down given it will them in a minimal and short term way? Should customers trust that this won’t happen?
“5. Google’s apps only work if an enterprise has no power users, employees are always online, enterprises haven’t built custom Office apps – doesn’t this equal a very small % of global information workers today? –On a feature comparison basis, it’s not surprising that Microsoft has a huge lead.
“6. Google apps don’t have essential document creation features like support for headers, footers, tables of content, footnotes, etc. Additionally, while customers can collaborate on basic docs without the above noted features, to collaborate on detailed docs, a company must implement a two part process – work together on the basic doc, save it to Word or Excel and then send via email for final edits. Yes they have a $50 price tag, but with the inefficiencies created by just this one cycle, how much do GAPE really cost – and can you afford the fidelity loss?
“7. Enterprise companies have to constantly think about government regulations and standards – while Google can store a lot of data for enterprises on Google servers, there is no easy to use, automated way for enterprises to regularly delete data, issue a legal hold for specific docs or bring copies into the corp. What happens if a company needs to respond to government regulations bodies? Google touts 99.9% uptime for their apps but what few people realize that promise is for Gmail only. Equally alarming is the definition Google has for “downtime” – ten consecutive minutes of downtime. What happens if throughout the day Google is down 7 minutes each hour? What does 7 minutes each hour for a full work day that cost an enterprise?
“8. In the world of business, it is always on and always connected. As such, having access to technical support 24/7 is essential. If a company deploys Google Apps and there is a technical issue at 8pm PST, Sorry. Google’s tech support is open M-F 1AM-6PM PST – are these the new hours of global business? And if a customer’s “designated administrator” is not available (a requirement) does business just stop?
“9. Google says that enterprise customers use only 10% of the features in today’s productivity applications which implies that EVERYONE needs the SAME 10% of the feature when in fact it is very clear that in each company there are specific roles people play that demands access to specific information – how does Google’s generic strategy address role specific needs?
“10. With Google apps in perpetual beta and Google controlling when and if they rollout specific features and functionality, customers have minimal if any control over the timing of product rollouts and features – how do 1) I know how to strategically plan and train and 2) get the features and functionality I have specifically requested? How much money does not knowing cost?
“I invite you to speak with customers, partners and analysts who can validate Office’s business model.”
There's no doubt these are compelling reasons why an enterprise should choose Microsoft Office over Google Apps, at this point. But it's noticeable that the list doesn't mention the word "collaboration", which is probably the key benefit of Google Apps compared to MS Office.
Nor does Microsoft adequately rebut that Google Apps will be a complement to Microsoft Office (as CapsGemini and Google claimed yesterday). Microsoft says in point 3 that "the costs actually become greater for a company as they now have two IT systems to run and manage and maintain." But that doesn't address the features that Google Apps offers and how it might complement an enterprise's office software set-up.
What do you make of Microsoft's response? It certainly brings up some valid criticisms of Google Apps and Web Office, but then Google isn't claiming their product is a replacement of MS Office. Their stance is that it's a complement - and so in that respect this list by a Microsoft spokesperson is probably an over-reaction. It looks like someone in Redmond hit the panic button a bit too early.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Monday, August 13, 2007
GridView 2.0
You can find good resources for ASP.NET 2.0 Gridview Control
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.web.ui.webcontrols.gridview.rowediting.aspx
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.web.ui.webcontrols.gridview.rowediting.aspx
Friday, August 10, 2007
10 Things You Should Know About Microsoft's Silverlight
Shawn Wildermuth
August 09, 2007 (CIO) Crafting a Web strategy is important for any thriving business. However, implementing that strategy with rich Internet applications is not always as easy as it should be. To ease that pain, Microsoft Corp. recently announced Silverlight, a cross-platform, cross-browser plug-in for Web application developers. The plug-in, currently available as a Release Candidate (which for all intents and purposes means it's released now), enables rich application development including media, interactivity and animation. The Silverlight plug-in currently works with Internet Explorer and Firefox Web browsers on Windows and with Firefox and Safari on Mac OS X.
I've been using Silverlight since I taught a course for internal Microsoft developers, shortly before the software's public unveiling as "WPF/E." I've written several books about Microsoft-based software development, such as Pragmatic ADO.Net (Addison-Wesley Professional, 2002), I co-wrote four Microsoft developer certification books, and I have invested quite a bit of time in examining the promises that the company is making for this "Flash killer." It's always hard to be critical of software that isn't fully released yet -- for one thing, it's impossible to point out serious bugs since they may be addressed by the time you fire up the development tool -- but the following reflects my professional and technical judgment based on several months of hands-on experience.
With the public release of Silverlight imminent, now is the right time to become familiar with the software and how it might affect your Web application strategy. With so much Silverlight information available right now, it is difficult to distill what is important and what is hype. I'll do my best to lift the fog with these 10 things that you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight.
1. Silverlight Avoids Cross-Browser/OS IssuesFor most development teams, developing a Web site that will work identically with popular browsers, including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Opera, is a difficult proposition. The problem is not simply the necessity for multiple code implementations but also exponentially large testing sets. As a developer creates matrices of browser versions and operating systems, the number of testbeds needed becomes enormous.
Usually, there are two ways that a development project addresses this: support only a small subset of Web browsers or increase the number of quality assurance personnel.
In contrast, the Silverlight plug-in enables an identical development model regardless of user operating system and browser. Currently, two operating systems and three browsers are supported. Microsoft is promising to add support for the Opera browser on Windows and Mac. In addition, the Mono project has made tremendous strides in its Moonlight project, which intends to bring Silverlight to Linux.
2. Silverlight 1.1 Is the Real StoryThe recent Release Candidate of Silverlight 1.0 has many organizations considering whether they should start working with Silverlight. While Silverlight 1.0 has many important and interesting features, in reality most Silverlight adoption hangs on its anticipated 1.1 release.
The Silverlight 1.1 release (currently in an alpha preview) is the first to support .Net in any appreciable way. This includes the basic .Net languages, C# and Visual Basic. In addition, according to Microsoft, Silverlight 1.1 will have .Net support for dynamic languages, such as Ruby, Python, dynamic Visual Basic and managed JScript. In my opinion, the important languages for Silverlight to support are C# and Visual Basic, as they allow .Net developers to create interesting Silverlight applications. In the Silverlight 1.1 release, any .Net language should be supported, since what is actually delivered to the browser are .Net assemblies.
In contrast, Silverlight 1.0 only supports Ecma International languages that are interpreted in the client. Silverlight 1.0 works well for existing Web developers who are already using client-side script for their work.
Silverlight 1.1 also supports a rich custom control model, which is important to ensure an integrated development experience. The Silverlight 1.0 experience is much less mature and is unlikely to get third parties interested in control development.
3. Silverlight Uses Technologies Your Developers Already KnowSilverlight is built with existing Microsoft technologies: a mix of Windows Presentation Framework-like XAML (XML application markup language), JavaScript and .Net technologies. If your developers are already familiar with Microsoft .Net and Web technologies, they can use their existing knowledge to build Silverlight applications. Even if your developers lack these skills, learning these technologies has applicability beyond the single product or project -- which isn't necessarily the case for other solutions, such as Adobe Flash's ActionScript.
The version of Silverlight you choose to introduce to a new project will likely depend on your development team's skill set. If your development team primarily does heavy ASP.Net server-side development (mostly C# and VB.Net), you should wait until Silverlight 1.1 is available. If your team is adept at client-side languages like JavaScript, Silverlight 1.0 is a great platform to introduce.
4. Silverlight UI Is just Markup -- Like HTMLXAML is the Silverlight's lingua franca for user interface design. You may already be familiar with another popular markup language, HTML. HTML files are plain text that contain information that tells the Web browser how to render the look and feel of a Web page. XAML does the same thing. However, instead of the browser interpreting the instructions about how to render the file, the Silverlight runtime does the rendering.
XAML being markup is important because it can be created dynamically. No matter what tools your developers use for server-side Web development, you are probably creating dynamic HTML to create pages. This technique is so compelling because you can create reusable pieces of HTML that you use on your site. A good example is the design of the main page of most Web sites. Normally, the header and footer (and often the left and right side borders) are reused throughout a Web page.
Because XAML is just markup, you can use server-side technologies to dynamically create XAML, just as your development teams already do with HTML. The markup language is different, but the techniques are the same.
5. Silverlight and AJAX Technologies Are ComplementaryThe Web is evolving. When the Web was new, back in the 1990s, everyone warned that developers should move as much as possible to the server so the application could scale. While this works well technically, it hampered the user experience. Now Asynchronous JavaScript and XML is all the rage. Simply put, AJAX writes code directly in the browser to enable better user interaction. The canonical example of this is Google maps (or Microsoft's Live maps, if you prefer).
Silverlight follows this model by allowing more expressive user interfaces in the browser. Exchanging data between the server and client using AJAX technologies (no matter which AJAX library you happen to use) allows Silverlight applications to be even more powerful. Using the rich user-interface model of Silverlight with the strong data-transfer model of AJAX allows for incredible interactivity without forcing users to wait for page refreshes.
6. Silverlight Allows Developers and Designers to Work TogetherThe Web has forced development teams to think more about design and aesthetics. Responsive user experience and intuitive interfaces have become the norm instead of the exception. This usually happens by involving artistic and user experience skills in application development. Today, that is accomplished by employing artists to come up with the design for a Web site.
However, the assets that artists use and deliver are usually different from the tools that developers use. Typically, artists deliver image files (e.g., Photoshop or .jpg files) or (in advanced cases) HTML wire frames for developers to integrate into a project. No matter what technology you use, these designs must be integrated into the Web application code. As the design evolves, this integration happens over and over. Silverlight suggests a better development story. The Microsoft tool set for Silverlight is a mix of traditional development tools, like Visual Studio, and new tools that are geared for designers, called Expression Studio.
For Silverlight, the primary design tool is Expression Blend, which allows creation of XAML in a way that is comfortable and familiar to designers. Using Blend is like Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop. The big difference is that it uses the same artifacts the developers use. Blend works with the same project files, XAML and JavaScript files as does Visual Studio. When a design is created and polished, there is no integration step to use it in Silverlight. Designers can see their designs interact with the same logic that developers add as a project matures. Doing so helps designers and developers to work closely together.
7. Silverlight Deliverables Are Not AtomicSilverlight is delivered to a Web browser in pieces. This means the code is in one or more packages (JavaScript files, assemblies, etc.), the design is delivered as one or more packages (as XAML files), and other assets are separately delivered (including images, fonts and video). First-time Silverlight developers who are familiar with Flash's single-file deliverable may consider this a detraction to the Silverlight platform.
In fact, I believe it is a benefit. The separate packages encourage the creation of dynamic server-side content much more easily than is accomplished today using Flash. It allows us to create compelling and dynamic XAML on the server and simply deliver it the way we do other markup (e.g., HTML). Silverlight has a facility for using Zip files to package up multiple files that are used by the XAML code (images, videos, fonts, script files, etc.) and download them efficiently to the client, but it is not a requirement.
8. Silverlight Is NewAs of this writing, Silverlight 1.0 is in a Release Candidate state, and Silverlight 1.1 is in Alpha Release. This is Microsoft's first try at this sort of technology. The technology is immature compared with similar offerings by other companies, most notably Adobe Inc.'s Flash and Flex products. Flash is currently at Version 9.0 and has had a longer time to get ahead in both ubiquity and richness. This is not to say that Silverlight won't catch up. Microsoft has a knack for learning from others' success and failure (see Java and .Net). But it is not a certainty.
If you plan to create applications that are primarily replacements for data-driven desktop applications, you might miss the lack of basic controls and data binding in Silverlight. Silverlight is not a replacement for Windows Forms, Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Java Applets or Sharepoint. Simply put, Silverlight was not designed to do line-of-business applications in these early versions. But if you want to create rich, compelling applications with reach across platforms and operating systems, Silverlight is a good fit.
9. Silverlight XAML versus WPF XAMLIt is easy to tout XAML as a great benefit because Microsoft's WPF also uses XAML. Unfortunately, these benefits are not as compelling as it may seem because of low WPF adoption and the differences between WPF XAML and Silverlight XAML.
First, anecdotal evidence indicates that WPF adoption rates are still relatively low in comparison with other client-side technologies, such as Visual Basic 6 and .Net's Windows Forms. So the fact that XAML has been in the wild for several years is a benefit, but it is not a big benefit in my opinion.
Second, the Silverlight XAML is a simplified grammar compared to WPF XAML, so Silverlight XAML is not as powerful. This is good and bad. Silverlight XAML is very understandable, but if your developers are coming to Silverlight from WPF, it might seem incomplete.
In my opinion, the smaller grammar is actually best for Silverlight, as the runtime is small and manageable for end users. Silverlight XAML does not include anything that is not necessary for the task at hand. Certainly, it would be beneficial to build more functionality into Silverlight XAML, but the current approach is to be careful about how much is added to keep the application programming interface small and light.
10. Silverlight Is a Great Way to Learn XAMLAs seen in the previous section, Silverlight's XAML has a small grammar. This means it is a great way to learn how XAML works. Developers trying to learn XAML and to come up to speed on the technology will appreciate Silverlight as a way to create clear and concise code. Most developers will soon start thinking about features they would like in Silverlight. When they start looking at WPF's XAML, they will see most of those features are already there.
In contrast, developers who start with WPF and pick up Silverlight will need to give up some of the arrows in their quivers.
Silverlight's runtime is about 4.5MB at this point. The .Net 3.0 runtime (the first to support WPF) weighs in at closer to 30MB. Surely not all of .Net 3.0 is WPF, but a large portion of it is. Starting with the smaller Silverlight XAML is a key to learning XAML quickly. You can't get bogged down in the minutiae of advanced WPF XAML concepts, such as templates, theming, data binding and 3-D.
Now is the time to determine where to use Silverlight in your own Web strategy. Silverlight is an exciting technology that should benefit companies, customers and users. I hope this article has helped you dig deeper than the marketing materials and understand the real benefits and limitations of the technology.
Shawn Wildermuth is a Microsoft MVP (C#), MCSD.Net, MCT. He is the founder of Wildermuth Consulting Services, delivering architecture, mentoring and software solutions in the Atlanta area. Shawn has enjoyed building data-driven software for more than 20 years. He is also a speaker on the INETA Speakers Bureau. Currently, Shawn is currently taking his Silverlight Workshop around the country, teaching people how to use Silverlight in their own projects. Shawn is the author of several books including Pragmatic ADO.Net (Addison-Wesley Professional, 2002); he is also co-author of four Microsoft Certification Training Kits for Microsoft Press, as well as the upcoming Prescriptive Data Architectures.
August 09, 2007 (CIO) Crafting a Web strategy is important for any thriving business. However, implementing that strategy with rich Internet applications is not always as easy as it should be. To ease that pain, Microsoft Corp. recently announced Silverlight, a cross-platform, cross-browser plug-in for Web application developers. The plug-in, currently available as a Release Candidate (which for all intents and purposes means it's released now), enables rich application development including media, interactivity and animation. The Silverlight plug-in currently works with Internet Explorer and Firefox Web browsers on Windows and with Firefox and Safari on Mac OS X.
I've been using Silverlight since I taught a course for internal Microsoft developers, shortly before the software's public unveiling as "WPF/E." I've written several books about Microsoft-based software development, such as Pragmatic ADO.Net (Addison-Wesley Professional, 2002), I co-wrote four Microsoft developer certification books, and I have invested quite a bit of time in examining the promises that the company is making for this "Flash killer." It's always hard to be critical of software that isn't fully released yet -- for one thing, it's impossible to point out serious bugs since they may be addressed by the time you fire up the development tool -- but the following reflects my professional and technical judgment based on several months of hands-on experience.
With the public release of Silverlight imminent, now is the right time to become familiar with the software and how it might affect your Web application strategy. With so much Silverlight information available right now, it is difficult to distill what is important and what is hype. I'll do my best to lift the fog with these 10 things that you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight.
1. Silverlight Avoids Cross-Browser/OS IssuesFor most development teams, developing a Web site that will work identically with popular browsers, including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Opera, is a difficult proposition. The problem is not simply the necessity for multiple code implementations but also exponentially large testing sets. As a developer creates matrices of browser versions and operating systems, the number of testbeds needed becomes enormous.
Usually, there are two ways that a development project addresses this: support only a small subset of Web browsers or increase the number of quality assurance personnel.
In contrast, the Silverlight plug-in enables an identical development model regardless of user operating system and browser. Currently, two operating systems and three browsers are supported. Microsoft is promising to add support for the Opera browser on Windows and Mac. In addition, the Mono project has made tremendous strides in its Moonlight project, which intends to bring Silverlight to Linux.
2. Silverlight 1.1 Is the Real StoryThe recent Release Candidate of Silverlight 1.0 has many organizations considering whether they should start working with Silverlight. While Silverlight 1.0 has many important and interesting features, in reality most Silverlight adoption hangs on its anticipated 1.1 release.
The Silverlight 1.1 release (currently in an alpha preview) is the first to support .Net in any appreciable way. This includes the basic .Net languages, C# and Visual Basic. In addition, according to Microsoft, Silverlight 1.1 will have .Net support for dynamic languages, such as Ruby, Python, dynamic Visual Basic and managed JScript. In my opinion, the important languages for Silverlight to support are C# and Visual Basic, as they allow .Net developers to create interesting Silverlight applications. In the Silverlight 1.1 release, any .Net language should be supported, since what is actually delivered to the browser are .Net assemblies.
In contrast, Silverlight 1.0 only supports Ecma International languages that are interpreted in the client. Silverlight 1.0 works well for existing Web developers who are already using client-side script for their work.
Silverlight 1.1 also supports a rich custom control model, which is important to ensure an integrated development experience. The Silverlight 1.0 experience is much less mature and is unlikely to get third parties interested in control development.
3. Silverlight Uses Technologies Your Developers Already KnowSilverlight is built with existing Microsoft technologies: a mix of Windows Presentation Framework-like XAML (XML application markup language), JavaScript and .Net technologies. If your developers are already familiar with Microsoft .Net and Web technologies, they can use their existing knowledge to build Silverlight applications. Even if your developers lack these skills, learning these technologies has applicability beyond the single product or project -- which isn't necessarily the case for other solutions, such as Adobe Flash's ActionScript.
The version of Silverlight you choose to introduce to a new project will likely depend on your development team's skill set. If your development team primarily does heavy ASP.Net server-side development (mostly C# and VB.Net), you should wait until Silverlight 1.1 is available. If your team is adept at client-side languages like JavaScript, Silverlight 1.0 is a great platform to introduce.
4. Silverlight UI Is just Markup -- Like HTMLXAML is the Silverlight's lingua franca for user interface design. You may already be familiar with another popular markup language, HTML. HTML files are plain text that contain information that tells the Web browser how to render the look and feel of a Web page. XAML does the same thing. However, instead of the browser interpreting the instructions about how to render the file, the Silverlight runtime does the rendering.
XAML being markup is important because it can be created dynamically. No matter what tools your developers use for server-side Web development, you are probably creating dynamic HTML to create pages. This technique is so compelling because you can create reusable pieces of HTML that you use on your site. A good example is the design of the main page of most Web sites. Normally, the header and footer (and often the left and right side borders) are reused throughout a Web page.
Because XAML is just markup, you can use server-side technologies to dynamically create XAML, just as your development teams already do with HTML. The markup language is different, but the techniques are the same.
5. Silverlight and AJAX Technologies Are ComplementaryThe Web is evolving. When the Web was new, back in the 1990s, everyone warned that developers should move as much as possible to the server so the application could scale. While this works well technically, it hampered the user experience. Now Asynchronous JavaScript and XML is all the rage. Simply put, AJAX writes code directly in the browser to enable better user interaction. The canonical example of this is Google maps (or Microsoft's Live maps, if you prefer).
Silverlight follows this model by allowing more expressive user interfaces in the browser. Exchanging data between the server and client using AJAX technologies (no matter which AJAX library you happen to use) allows Silverlight applications to be even more powerful. Using the rich user-interface model of Silverlight with the strong data-transfer model of AJAX allows for incredible interactivity without forcing users to wait for page refreshes.
6. Silverlight Allows Developers and Designers to Work TogetherThe Web has forced development teams to think more about design and aesthetics. Responsive user experience and intuitive interfaces have become the norm instead of the exception. This usually happens by involving artistic and user experience skills in application development. Today, that is accomplished by employing artists to come up with the design for a Web site.
However, the assets that artists use and deliver are usually different from the tools that developers use. Typically, artists deliver image files (e.g., Photoshop or .jpg files) or (in advanced cases) HTML wire frames for developers to integrate into a project. No matter what technology you use, these designs must be integrated into the Web application code. As the design evolves, this integration happens over and over. Silverlight suggests a better development story. The Microsoft tool set for Silverlight is a mix of traditional development tools, like Visual Studio, and new tools that are geared for designers, called Expression Studio.
For Silverlight, the primary design tool is Expression Blend, which allows creation of XAML in a way that is comfortable and familiar to designers. Using Blend is like Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop. The big difference is that it uses the same artifacts the developers use. Blend works with the same project files, XAML and JavaScript files as does Visual Studio. When a design is created and polished, there is no integration step to use it in Silverlight. Designers can see their designs interact with the same logic that developers add as a project matures. Doing so helps designers and developers to work closely together.
7. Silverlight Deliverables Are Not AtomicSilverlight is delivered to a Web browser in pieces. This means the code is in one or more packages (JavaScript files, assemblies, etc.), the design is delivered as one or more packages (as XAML files), and other assets are separately delivered (including images, fonts and video). First-time Silverlight developers who are familiar with Flash's single-file deliverable may consider this a detraction to the Silverlight platform.
In fact, I believe it is a benefit. The separate packages encourage the creation of dynamic server-side content much more easily than is accomplished today using Flash. It allows us to create compelling and dynamic XAML on the server and simply deliver it the way we do other markup (e.g., HTML). Silverlight has a facility for using Zip files to package up multiple files that are used by the XAML code (images, videos, fonts, script files, etc.) and download them efficiently to the client, but it is not a requirement.
8. Silverlight Is NewAs of this writing, Silverlight 1.0 is in a Release Candidate state, and Silverlight 1.1 is in Alpha Release. This is Microsoft's first try at this sort of technology. The technology is immature compared with similar offerings by other companies, most notably Adobe Inc.'s Flash and Flex products. Flash is currently at Version 9.0 and has had a longer time to get ahead in both ubiquity and richness. This is not to say that Silverlight won't catch up. Microsoft has a knack for learning from others' success and failure (see Java and .Net). But it is not a certainty.
If you plan to create applications that are primarily replacements for data-driven desktop applications, you might miss the lack of basic controls and data binding in Silverlight. Silverlight is not a replacement for Windows Forms, Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Java Applets or Sharepoint. Simply put, Silverlight was not designed to do line-of-business applications in these early versions. But if you want to create rich, compelling applications with reach across platforms and operating systems, Silverlight is a good fit.
9. Silverlight XAML versus WPF XAMLIt is easy to tout XAML as a great benefit because Microsoft's WPF also uses XAML. Unfortunately, these benefits are not as compelling as it may seem because of low WPF adoption and the differences between WPF XAML and Silverlight XAML.
First, anecdotal evidence indicates that WPF adoption rates are still relatively low in comparison with other client-side technologies, such as Visual Basic 6 and .Net's Windows Forms. So the fact that XAML has been in the wild for several years is a benefit, but it is not a big benefit in my opinion.
Second, the Silverlight XAML is a simplified grammar compared to WPF XAML, so Silverlight XAML is not as powerful. This is good and bad. Silverlight XAML is very understandable, but if your developers are coming to Silverlight from WPF, it might seem incomplete.
In my opinion, the smaller grammar is actually best for Silverlight, as the runtime is small and manageable for end users. Silverlight XAML does not include anything that is not necessary for the task at hand. Certainly, it would be beneficial to build more functionality into Silverlight XAML, but the current approach is to be careful about how much is added to keep the application programming interface small and light.
10. Silverlight Is a Great Way to Learn XAMLAs seen in the previous section, Silverlight's XAML has a small grammar. This means it is a great way to learn how XAML works. Developers trying to learn XAML and to come up to speed on the technology will appreciate Silverlight as a way to create clear and concise code. Most developers will soon start thinking about features they would like in Silverlight. When they start looking at WPF's XAML, they will see most of those features are already there.
In contrast, developers who start with WPF and pick up Silverlight will need to give up some of the arrows in their quivers.
Silverlight's runtime is about 4.5MB at this point. The .Net 3.0 runtime (the first to support WPF) weighs in at closer to 30MB. Surely not all of .Net 3.0 is WPF, but a large portion of it is. Starting with the smaller Silverlight XAML is a key to learning XAML quickly. You can't get bogged down in the minutiae of advanced WPF XAML concepts, such as templates, theming, data binding and 3-D.
Now is the time to determine where to use Silverlight in your own Web strategy. Silverlight is an exciting technology that should benefit companies, customers and users. I hope this article has helped you dig deeper than the marketing materials and understand the real benefits and limitations of the technology.
Shawn Wildermuth is a Microsoft MVP (C#), MCSD.Net, MCT. He is the founder of Wildermuth Consulting Services, delivering architecture, mentoring and software solutions in the Atlanta area. Shawn has enjoyed building data-driven software for more than 20 years. He is also a speaker on the INETA Speakers Bureau. Currently, Shawn is currently taking his Silverlight Workshop around the country, teaching people how to use Silverlight in their own projects. Shawn is the author of several books including Pragmatic ADO.Net (Addison-Wesley Professional, 2002); he is also co-author of four Microsoft Certification Training Kits for Microsoft Press, as well as the upcoming Prescriptive Data Architectures.
Windows Live Core - the Software as a Service platform
While Ray Ozzie has been keeping details of his Software as a Service platform quiet, some small bits of information are emerging from other members on his team. Two of his direct reports, David Treadwell and Amitabh Srivastava are both listed as working on developing the next generation Live services platform known as Windows Live Core:
"This start-up effort will define the vision and create the implementation for cloud-based platform services that will allow the creation of compelling applications that make deep use of network-based information."
Other members of the Windows Live Core team that we've tracked down include David Cutler, who led the development of Windows, Abolade Gbadegesin, former architect of networking in Windows Vista and Elissa Murphy, Principal PM for Windows Live Core. This team has "joined Ray Ozzie to focus on next generation cloud services; to build an highly efficient computing fabric for Microsoft data centers and a services platform for agile development of high-quality cloud services." In a question and answer with financial analysts in February, Ozzie talked about how Google helped Microsoft change its thinking about services as a platform:
"In the Google case, what's fascinating to me is that although you can characterize Google as a search compete, there are two very significant things that happened at Microsoft [as a result]. One was the recognition of advertising as an economic engine," Ozzie said. "And the other was services-based infrastructure. Once the realization was made by different groups that every product would have a services component, you go back to the company's platform roots and figure out what kind of platform treats the services layer as a system."
As Srivastava's Microsoft Research page mentions, part of the work on the Windows Live Core Operating System is heavily focused on Microsoft data centers. James Hamilton, an architect on the Windows Live Core team, gave two presentations recently discussing module datacentres and how they can be used to provide economies of scale for Software as a Service. The idea of using commercial shipping containers to build high-scale datacenters seems rather unusual, however those working on the Ozzie team are the ideal candidates to innovatively solve these kinds of complex problems. The need for datacenters was highlighted by Ozzie in an interview early last year with Fortune, where he said that Microsoft must build a global network of server farms that will cost "staggering" amounts of money. For those who are saying that "Live is dead" this should serve as a reminder that Microsoft are investing heavily in online services and are serious about their future in this sector.
While the premise behind Windows Live Core is becoming clearer, there is certainly a lot more to be learnt. Whether Ray Ozzie provides more details at Mix07 is anybody's guess. We're unable to attend but will be following the events closely, and we'll be looking to our readers to send us the talk from the floor - drop us a comment below if you're planning on going and what you are hoping to see or hear.
"This start-up effort will define the vision and create the implementation for cloud-based platform services that will allow the creation of compelling applications that make deep use of network-based information."
Other members of the Windows Live Core team that we've tracked down include David Cutler, who led the development of Windows, Abolade Gbadegesin, former architect of networking in Windows Vista and Elissa Murphy, Principal PM for Windows Live Core. This team has "joined Ray Ozzie to focus on next generation cloud services; to build an highly efficient computing fabric for Microsoft data centers and a services platform for agile development of high-quality cloud services." In a question and answer with financial analysts in February, Ozzie talked about how Google helped Microsoft change its thinking about services as a platform:
"In the Google case, what's fascinating to me is that although you can characterize Google as a search compete, there are two very significant things that happened at Microsoft [as a result]. One was the recognition of advertising as an economic engine," Ozzie said. "And the other was services-based infrastructure. Once the realization was made by different groups that every product would have a services component, you go back to the company's platform roots and figure out what kind of platform treats the services layer as a system."
As Srivastava's Microsoft Research page mentions, part of the work on the Windows Live Core Operating System is heavily focused on Microsoft data centers. James Hamilton, an architect on the Windows Live Core team, gave two presentations recently discussing module datacentres and how they can be used to provide economies of scale for Software as a Service. The idea of using commercial shipping containers to build high-scale datacenters seems rather unusual, however those working on the Ozzie team are the ideal candidates to innovatively solve these kinds of complex problems. The need for datacenters was highlighted by Ozzie in an interview early last year with Fortune, where he said that Microsoft must build a global network of server farms that will cost "staggering" amounts of money. For those who are saying that "Live is dead" this should serve as a reminder that Microsoft are investing heavily in online services and are serious about their future in this sector.
While the premise behind Windows Live Core is becoming clearer, there is certainly a lot more to be learnt. Whether Ray Ozzie provides more details at Mix07 is anybody's guess. We're unable to attend but will be following the events closely, and we'll be looking to our readers to send us the talk from the floor - drop us a comment below if you're planning on going and what you are hoping to see or hear.
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