Are They Still RIAs if They Are Desktop Applications?

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I had a post over on ZDNet that I wasn’t that happy with. I’ve had writer’s bloc the past week and it carried over from the weekend. Partly it’s just because I’ve been heads down on my project so haven’t had time for news – my primary source of inspiration.

After I posted today Matt asked me an interesting question, “can they still be called RIAs if they’re desktop apps?” And it’s a valid question. I think the answer is it depends. As Matt noted while we were chatting (he has some great thoughts up on his blog from our conversation) there are a lot of desktop applications that aren’t rich. Something I think the web has been very good at is bringing more of a design-eye to small scale development. There are a lot of good web apps that are more usable than desktop applications.

I think in the end there is a kind of application, one that uses web technologies and incorporates multimedia, design and user interface work, that is that much better than what we have now. It spans to mobile devices, to browser applications and the desktop. Is the ideal term for this kind of application a Rich Internet Application? Maybe not, but the term has come to be an umbrella for a better software experience no matter what the delivery mechanism. I think that’s an indication of how much growth and interest there is in focusing on experience and building richer apps.

[tags]Rich Internet Applications[/tags]

Related posts:

  1. RIAs on Read/Write Web’s 2007 Web Predictions
  2. Promoting Apollo with Established Desktop Applications
  3. Apollo – Revitalizing the Desktop
  4. IBM on Technology options for RIAs
  5. What Is Apollo For?
  • http://blogs.msdn.com/msmossyblog Scott Barnes

    If it connects to a network address (aka Interent, Intranet), it qualifies. If its using Web based technology then its hiding under the banner of RIA imho.

    I think also the term “Rich” needs more qualification, as are they truly “Rich”? Some Applications aren’t even that, they are more “widgets/gadgets/pockets of code” then Applications.

    That being said, its now a piece of the english language that is no longer in our hands, its now ingrained into the mindset much like the terms CRM, CMS, ERP, BPM etc work today. Depending on whom you speak to you will get a variety of responses but usually they have at the heart, a similiar meaning – just tends to get lost in translation.

    I’m with Matt though, RIA for me has always meant “FLASH” as thats as far as I can cast my mind back to the Macromedia days.

    “Experience Matters” – such an awesome motto.

  • http://blog.digitalbackcountry.com Ryan Stewart

    Scott your blog link still freaks me out :) (Congrats though). But you’re right, it seems like a term that is beyond anyone to define at this point. It seems like there are a set of technologies that it has been applied to and those technologies are interesting to the same kinds of people.

  • http://blogs.msdn.com/msmossyblog Scott Barnes

    RE: Blog, heheeh I’m still an RIA fan at heart and just so happens Microsoft are paying me to be that (think of it as sponsorship hehehe).

    RIA.
    Yeah, I think its a cool club to be in though, as this for me is like being handed HTML for the first time and saying the words “What should we do with it”.

    RIA also conjures the notion that its “Pioneering” unchartered territory, no rules, life begins at 60 so to speak!

  • http://weblogs.macromedia.com/jd John Dowdell

    For what it’s worth, the original definition for “Rich Internet Applications” doesn’t seem to mention any particular environmentment for these types of applications, although it does mention “

  • http://weblogs.macromedia.com/jd John Dowdell

    phooey… comment truncated…. :(

    … although it does mention “Ability to run as a stand-alone, offline application” as a desired goal:
    http://weblogs.macromedia.com/jd/archives/2005/03/ria_definition.cfm

    btw, for your ZDNet article on barcodes, these have been popularly used in Japan (and other parts of Asia?) the past few years, to turn realworld objects back into digital data:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QR_Code
    http://www.google.com/search?q=adobe+acrobat+barcode

    Barcodes are also currently used to quickly extract digital data from paper in Adobe Acrobat technologies as well:
    http://www.google.com/search?q=adobe+acrobat+barcode

    jd

  • http://blog.digitalbackcountry.com Ryan Stewart

    Hey JD, sorry about that, WordPress thought your second comment was spam so it was put in my moderation queue.

    Then again, you know what I think of the original definition – I see that paper as a “living document” ;)

    Thanks for the bar code links. I’ve seen a cool Flex app that uses Barcodes but I wasn’t sure if I was allowed to mention it.

  • http://polyGeek.com Oz

    I think of RIAs on a scale. And since it has three letters, like RGB, then we can map to a color. So when I call some of the work that I do a RIA I think: how Rich is it? how Internety is it? and how Applicationy is it? And then grade each on a scale.

    So, for instance, the Zune Media Player that I did is pretty rich. It dynamically loads images and video. And it can be skinned by changing the XML settings. I’ll give it a “CC” in that category. It obviously runs in a browser plus it uses progressive video but the communication is only requests. There is no data being sent back to the server to be stored. So I’ll give it a “99″ in that category. Finally, for it’s application status I wouldn’t rank it very high. The only user interaction is browsing. There’s no personalization, it doesn’t remember the user, and the user can’t submit anything like ranking the video they just watched. So there I’ll be generous and give it a “33″ just because everything that isn’t a bitmap is at least drawn programatically – that has to count for something.

    That ends up being CC9933 which is a brownish/copper color. If it were a little darker it would be Zune Brown. ;-)

  • Hamilton

    Great blog! As a 50+ yrs. noob much is still over my head but good clear information is rather addicting. I also have read your ZDNet blog. Just made the conection.
    Glad I found you!!

  • Cub

    NetNewsWire developer Brent Simmons calls them “Hybrid Apps”:
    http://inessential.com/?comments=1&postid=3353

    Of course, an RIA developer may equate that term with mixing and matching different client technologies.

    Another one I’ve seen in different spots: IDA
    Internet Desktop Application

  • Cub

    Alan Lewis (eBay techie) – RIDA – Rich Internet Desktop Application:
    http://alanlewis.typepad.com/weblog/2006/12/rich_internet_d.html

  • http://www.visokio,com Thomas Bate

    Let’s look at a specific case…Visokio Omniscope…highly scaleable visualisation and data management/publishing Java desktop application, dynamic web linking ability, web services-aware via user-selected HTTP Post, including user input fields.

    Two-way Connectors for business platforms like APEX/Salesforce

    Consumer Connectors for GoogleBase/spreadsheets, etc.

    How would you classify? (its free to try…www.visokio.com)

  • http://danny-t.co.uk Danny-T

    I think it’s time for a new acronym RIDA as I stated a claim in a previous apollo article :P

    In all seriousness though, I think there is going to be a fair amount of flaming over what can and can’t be considered an RIA.

    The purists will not deem anything outside the browser an RIA, the uninducted will call every connected desktop app an RIA and those of us who have been interested long enough not to care will use the term where it just feels right… and then get pulled up for using it in slightly the wrong context.

    Anyone get abused for saying ajax when they meant DHTML and JavaScript? ;)

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  • http://christmas-shopping-sites.blogspot.com/ david

    Interesting info
    Thanks for article

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