Microsoft, Silverlight

SilverLight 1.0 launched

Back in May when Microsoft first announced SilverLight, there was quite a bit of hoopla. And, in fairness to Microsoft, deservedly so – the demos I saw of SilverLight at the launch were pretty amazing.

What is SilverLight? SilverLight is similar to Flash – it is a browser plugin which allows for stunning interactivity and video play in a browser (for example, check out the Halo 3 sample). If you want to know more about SilverLight, check out the podcast I did with Brad Abrams, SilverLight program manager.

Today Microsoft have announced that the SilverLight 1.0 plugin is available for download.

Silverlight

Because of the ability to write managed code for SilverLight, I’m looking forward to seeing what developers do with this!

5 thoughts on “SilverLight 1.0 launched”

  2. AFAIK , the ‘Managed Code’ bit involves using .Net on the client, which is at the core of why Silverlight doesn’t work on anything other than Mac and Windows (and that includes mobile devices unless it’s got Windows CE).

    I hope I’m wrong , as anything that pushes the boundaries of the user experience is good.

    Paul

  4. Tom,

    I’m aware of the Mono project (they’re good guys) and what they’re doing in this area, but I don’t think it solves the core issues here

    1) There will be a significant time lag until the release. Even then I doubt if it will be a seamless install. Also, due to patent and other issue , Mono is not seeking to do a full rebuild of .Net, although hopefully this will not be one of the missing pieces.
    2) Mono only addresses Linux support, doesn’t automatically guarantee Silverlight working on mobile devices in the way the Flash does.

    This isn’t just a ‘build a Silverlight player issue’ , it’s the overhead in having a full managed code environment (instead of just Flash of Javascripting).

    Don’t get me wrong; I think Silverlight is better than the current efforts in my language of choice (Java). It’s just that we’ve waiting 10 years for Applets et al to give us a rich client. Silverlight is a good step, but not the final destination.

    Paul , Technology and People

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