Recently, several major players in media and social networking, including the Financial Times, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook have all launched rich web applications. These sites, thanks to the magic of HTML5, run in any modern browser irrespective of the device they are using and come very close to matching the functionality of their "native" app cousins.
The sudden interest in web apps is notable. The three advantages of this approach are-
First, HTML5 has finally matured into a strong alternative to native iOS and Android apps. These web apps can even run offline.
Second, it shows that perhaps developers are frustrated that they need to support multiple platforms. Android devices alone come in so many shapes, sizes and resolutions, that supporting them is a difficult and expensive challenge. Web apps solve this conundrum.
Finally, there's freedom for end users who can use a Rich Web App on any device they prefer.
I feel this is the way to go for bringing down software development and maintenance costs. This will even reduce the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) of our software because this will ensure browsers to become smarter and mature to handle different devices, rather than making us write separate code bases for each device type. The device manufacturers can supply plug-ins for the browser on the device to access the hardware features of the device. So, the users can give/ deny permissions for accessing the Cameras, SIM cards, Wi-Fi, etc; to a rich web app running in a browser. Just like the way Client-Server applications on Desktop are outdated, the Apps on mobile will soon be obsolete. Rich Web Apps will save device memory along with bandwidth for zero update need of Apps.
Just like Client-Server applications on Desktop lost their clout on the advent of web applications, so will the current mobile apps lose their popularity to Rich Web Apps.
The sudden interest in web apps is notable. The three advantages of this approach are-
First, HTML5 has finally matured into a strong alternative to native iOS and Android apps. These web apps can even run offline.
Second, it shows that perhaps developers are frustrated that they need to support multiple platforms. Android devices alone come in so many shapes, sizes and resolutions, that supporting them is a difficult and expensive challenge. Web apps solve this conundrum.
Finally, there's freedom for end users who can use a Rich Web App on any device they prefer.
I feel this is the way to go for bringing down software development and maintenance costs. This will even reduce the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) of our software because this will ensure browsers to become smarter and mature to handle different devices, rather than making us write separate code bases for each device type. The device manufacturers can supply plug-ins for the browser on the device to access the hardware features of the device. So, the users can give/ deny permissions for accessing the Cameras, SIM cards, Wi-Fi, etc; to a rich web app running in a browser. Just like the way Client-Server applications on Desktop are outdated, the Apps on mobile will soon be obsolete. Rich Web Apps will save device memory along with bandwidth for zero update need of Apps.
Just like Client-Server applications on Desktop lost their clout on the advent of web applications, so will the current mobile apps lose their popularity to Rich Web Apps.
