On 7. May 2008, at 20:23, Scott Shattuck wrote:
Clearly if all i want is scratch area I don't need file system access. But there are use cases for integrating a browser-based application with the host operating system that can't be addressed in that fashion. It's naive to imagine that these use cases won't continue to create pressure to expand the capability of the browser as a "VM" until it is on a par with, say, the JVM, in terms of what it can do when properly authenticated.
Exactly. But how long will it take to get there? You know, there is this really cool new Java bridge (6u10/plugin2), that allows seamless integration of scriptable Java code in any Web application. And there is this almost endless list of available extensions.. File IO, Socket API, XHR with event-based parsing and no-same-host, mpeg, MIDI, Address-book, PIM, SMTP/POP3/IMAP, Bluetooth, Zeroconf, Sensor API's and what-have-you other JSR's, all of it available today. Does it really make sense to basically replicate this into browsers? Why not use the browser for what it is good at (portable presentation, UI) and embrace that GPLed JVM for all device and security related needs?
Timur http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/ea/6u10/plugin2/index.jsp
