What is the Microsoft version of an embedded Java web applet?

Question

What is the Microsoft version of an embedded Java web applet? Is there a good example of one on the web?

Also, why is the dynamic web dominated by ajax and not embedded applications?

Answer 1

An ActiveX control?

Also, to your second question, well these "embedded applications" as you call them aren't really web applications. They are components that require browsers to support some sort of way of hosting them that are outside of the realm of traditional Web standards and specifications. As for why these applications don't "dominate" the markert, they tend to break out of the way the web works and many kinds of platforms and devices don't support them such as mobile phones.

Answer 2

Silverlight is probably the closest thing now.

As far as why the web is dominated by JS driven websites rather than embedded proprietary applications I'd venture to guess it's the openness of the resulting web pages. Almost every web browser out today ships with a JS engine, and most users run JS; this is important because it means the user doesn't have to have any other applications (beyond the browser) installed on their computer.

JavaScript driven sites are also more portable than embedded applications -- the developer only needs to worry about a browser being installed (though perhaps a particular browser), not what operating system the end user is running. In terms of being on the web, only having to worry about browsers is better than having to worry about browsers and operating systems.

Furthermore, the pages that result from JS execution are selectable, the text can be copied and pasted -- in general, JS-driven websites are often more accessible (though often not as accessible as plain-old-text websites).

Perhaps something that helped JS/Ajax rise to the top was that it could so easily access to the DOM, so it plays nice with HTML (and the existing web infrastructure).

Answer 3

You could consider ActiveX or Silverlight both as alternatives to Java Applets.

Ajax is built on open standards, is natively supported by most modern browsers without requiring a plugin download, and when done correctly is often the best option from a performance standpoint.

Answer 4

The Microsoft equivalent of an "applet" is roughly an activeX control, although they are only vaugely similar - the similarity is that they are both embeddable into the browser. The most notable difference other than windows vs cross platform is in the region of security. With ActiveX, it is all or nothing - you either don't run it, or you trust it with everything - the activeX control runs as a regular windows "program" and has the same level of access as other programs running under your account. With an applet, security is more finely controlled, with the default being a controlled environment - the "sandbox".

As to why AJAX is more popular might be considered a subjective question, but from the technical perspective, some objective points in favor are:

• it is implemented on top of a browser model that aims to provide a safe/secure execution environment
• is cross platform (in as much as the browsers adhering to the various standards involved.)
• has a suite of development tools and libraries for getting results quick
• it can manipulate the components in the browser rather than working inside an isolated embedded box
• it provides a better end user experience - seamless integration with the webpage with no security warnings, certificates, popups etc.