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Weekly UpdatesBrowser Plug-ins
Browser plug-ins enhance the functionality available in the browser and especially so for multimedia content; examples are Adobe Flash, Java Runtime Engine and Applets, and Microsoft Silverlight.
Out-of-browser RIA
The third category of RIA takes the application out of the browser. It is possible to build applications that connect via the Internet outside the browser using a number of protocols, not just HTTP (the Web protocol), and for custom, in-house applications this is an option to be considered. There is another mode of use where applications can be taken off-line when the user is away from an Internet connection--for example, when working in the field with a customer--and then re-connect later to synchronise with the back-end.
Some of the benefits of working with RIA, explored in greater depth in this Report, include:
* Ease of application administration, maintenance, and update through a centralised server-side point.
* Ease of application delivery via Internet/Intranet.
* Complements Web services, composite applications, and SOA.
* Encourages reuse through a clear separation of presentation layer, business logic, and data model.
* Makes it easy to create a single application with multiple presentation client-sides: mobile devices or fixed machines.
* Reduces spread of application viruses through centralised control of application on the server-side.
* Can cater for a range of thin to fat options on the client-side.
The versatility that RIAs provide, when combined with other trends in the IT infrastructure (such as SOA), will lead to a point, in Butler Group's opinion, when RIA will become the default mode of application delivery.
An issue of paramount importance is security. However, with RIA the onus has shifted back to the client-side, but this time to the application itself. In particular, Ajax-based RIAs introduce new attack possibilities through the use of malicious JavaScript--this is not a weakness of JavaScript or a problem inherent in Ajax, it is simply that browsers were built for a simpler, more constrained display of information, and writing secure RIA is difficult for new programmers. There are guidelines being published to help educate developers, and advanced Ajax frameworks also remove this threat by being built with security in mind. The other types of RIA also have robust security, including those based on Adobe Flash, the Java platform, and Microsoft .NET.
Butler Group advocates creating separate Web services and RIA policies for Intranet and Internet use; in particular, internally created Web services must not be accessed from the Internet without first passing through internal governance controls. The idea that Enterprise 2.0 mashups can be created by combining external Web services with internal ones is too early and currently unsafe.
Market Issues
The types of RIA vendors can be categorised as follows:
* Ajax toolkits and widget libraries: There are both open source software and commercially-priced examples. This category will be used by developers wishing to build RIA from the ground up as custom software. For general business use, this category is not relevant.
* Pure Ajax frameworks with light client-side footprints: In this category there are advanced Ajax frameworks that manage the communication between user interaction and widgets and application state synchronisation between the client- and server- sides. They also provide robust security measures, have compatible widget libraries out-of-the-box, and provide their own Integrated Development Environments (IDEs) or RIA builder plug-ins to standard IDEs.
* RIA with browser plug-ins: Whereas Ajax renders in HTML, a browser plug-in can provide a container for the rendering of advanced formats such as vector graphics. Examples are Adobe Flash player, Java Applets, and Microsoft Silverlight.
* RIA with heavy client-side application platforms: Applications built with the Java platform or Microsoft .NET Framework on the client-side fall into this category. These applications can connect to servers using the Internet outside the browser or combine with Ajax and use the browser.
* End-to-end application development environments: Whereas the other categories are tools designed for programmers, there are end-to-end development environments with advanced Graphical User Interface (GUI) drag-and-drop facilities for creating RIA. These tools can be used by power users, domain experts, and business analysts with limited programming skills.
* Rest of the market: A number of proprietary RIA solutions are still available (such as Curl), but given the move towards open standards, it is unlikely they will grow; rather we expect decrease in market share. Butler Group expects RIA vendor rationalisation to take place as market adoption increases. The greatest market adoption in RIA is currently in RWA, which is past the early adopter stage and into the early majority. The chief market trend in RWA is for existing Web development tools to add their own Ajax capability.
The larger vendors, such as Adobe, Microsoft, and TIBCO, are appealing to the developer mass market and offer free tools to grow the market for their premium, enterprise products. Sun is also appealing to the developer community by providing its tools as open source in order to grow the Java platform. IBM supports open source Eclipse and many Web 2.0 projects, including the DoJo Ajax toolkit provider. We believe it likely that IBM will make an acquisition in this space.
Smaller players have a more business-focused, go-to-market strategy, appealing to business needs rather than the IT department. Opportunities occur in the Small- to Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) market and at departmental levels within large organisations, where providing a solution that encompasses business requirements gathering, development processes and Agile methodologies, and with supporting development tools, will prove to be attractive.
The end-to-end, Web-based application development tool providers, notably edge IPK and OutSystems, enable power users and business analysts to create applications. For the right customer and business requirements these tools make a good choice.
The toolkit projects--many that are open source and appearing in our Vendor Profiles, in Section 8--are mainly aimed at the mass developer market and also feed into higher-value frameworks.
Conclusion As the Internet progresses in its transition from a 'technology' to part of the everyday fabric of society, then more business services and applications will be based on its presence. To be part of this trend, businesses need tostart an internal RWA investigation, if they have not already done so, to understand the skills they require and which applications they need to build. This Report will help in selecting the right technology, implementing the right roll-out strategy, and choosing an appropriate RWA development tool or tools.
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