RSS'Avalon' Extended to Mac, Web Devices
By Ed Oswald | Published September 16, 2005, 3:27 PM
At this week's Professional Developers Conference, a lot of the focus has been on making the user experience within Windows better. However, Microsoft is also aiming to extend that same user experience across platforms and devices through "Windows Presentation Foundation Everywhere," or WPF/E.
Windows Presentation Foundation, formerly code-named "Avalon," is the new unified graphical presentation system for Windows Vista. It is designed to take advantage of modern hardware to create better graphical interfaces for Windows applications. Avalon is based on XAML, an XML-based interface language.
Like its bigger brother, WPF/E relies on XAML and JavaScript to build pages. Since older versions of Windows, as well as other operating systems such as Mac OS X, support JavaScript, a developer could use WPF/E to save development time by only coding a single application that can be deployed on many systems.
For example, at a PDC keynote this week, a Netflix application built upon XAML was demoed on the full Presentation Foundation in Windows Vista, then through WPF/E on a PDA and smart phone without a significant degradation in usability.
Jupiter Research senior analyst Joe Wilcox says that Microsoft is making great efforts to embrace the competition and understanding that brand exclusivity is not something which many consumers prefer. During PDC 2005, Symbian cell phones were demoed, Firefox browsers were used and Apple's Safari browser even made an appearance.
"It's about time Microsoft took such an approach," Wilcox told BetaNews. "Windows is entrenched, so it's a low-risk strategy with potentially big pay off for Microsoft, particularly as the company tries to woo more developers to its tools."
WPF/E is smaller than the full subset of APIs that come with Vista, and only about one megabyte of runtimes will be required to run applications. Since it has less functionality, interfaces displayed using WPF/E will not be as rich, but they will be similar, Microsoft says.
Is it just me, or could this be Microsoft's attempt at controlling the presentation layer on multiple operating systems? how long will it be before the Avalon layer is availble on Linux? Could you imagine a MS funded linux company producing a branded linux distro that would effectively be, for all intents and purposes...
Microsoft Linux?
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|Since Apple has less than a 3% market share of desktop computers, they can use all the help Microsoft gives them !
Mac would have dried up and blown away ten years ago had Microsoft stopped porting it's MS Office applications to their OS.
So, we correctly think of Apple computers existing at the pleasure of Bill Gates.
The Computer Rodent
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|How the hell is it that Gate's is the one that kept apple alive throughout the years? I think Steve Jobs is the one to thank for bringing Apple back up in the late 90's with the iMac and keeping it alive since then. He revolutionized Apple and he isn’t done yet. This is only the beginning. Sure if there was no office version for Mac there would be some cuts in sales, but people that buy Mac’s buy them because they want refuge from viruses, malware, and spyware (not saying their nonexistent on OS X, but the danger is dramatically less than windows). They would find alternatives Open office.org (getting better). And if there was no Office then I’m sure apple would release a serious Office competitor if it had to (iWork is good but doesn’t compete). Just like the games on OS X are always out long after the windows version is released. Not a good analogy but you understand what I’m saying. People still buy them. Apple has a niche and I think it works for them. Apple can survive on 3%.
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|Apple has a small share, yes
Bill Gates has nothing to do with apple's survival... either someone lied to you, or you're not paying attention... MS's cash investment (which is divested) was puny compared to Apple's vast cash holdings at the time.
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|"Bill Gates has nothing to do with apple's survival... either someone lied to you, or you're not paying attention"
Guess someone lied to the PC Rodent about Microsoft having ported it's MS Office applications to the Mac OS.
Or, maybe ~you~ live in a lead mine !
The DataRat
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|"How the hell is it that Gate's is the one that kept apple alive throughout the years? I think Steve Jobs is the one to thank for bringing Apple back"
Before Jobs returned to make Apple a music company, Bill Gates kept Apple on life support by porting Microsoft Office to the Mac OS.
Of course, the Apple Taliban would rather die under torture than admit this !
" They would find alternatives Open office.org"
There was NO "open office" when Bill Gates saved Apple by porting MS Office to the Mac !
The DataRat
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|Remember that Microsoft owns a significant part of Apple's shares as well. Between that and staying out of the courts (monopoly anyone?), it's in their best interest to see Apple thrive.
Porting their software to other platforms is frankly a good idea. From MS point of view it's better that people use their software than a competitors, even though they use another platform.
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|Actually, you're wrong. Microsoft doesn't own a signifigant part of Apple shares.
Back in 1997, when Apple were having financial problems, Microsoft stepped
in to by purchasing (IIRC) US$150m of Apple shares. This was around the
time of Mac OS 8.x, and as part of the deal, Microsoft Internet Explorer
for Macintosh was to effectively displace Netscape Navigator is
the default web browser on all new Macintosh computers.
Since then, Apple have had big successes with the introduction of the iMac,
and of course, the now ubiquitous iPod. Because of these big successes,
the financial situation at Apple, hasdefinitely improved quite signifigantly,
so much so, they've been able re-purchase back most (if not all) of
what Microsoft purchased in company shares all those years ago.
Mind you, I'd imagine that Microsoft Corporation does own a few shares
in Apple Computer Inc, but exactly how many or how much, I don't know.
And neither do you, matey!
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|"they've been able re-purchase back most (if not all) of what Microsoft purchased in company shares all those years ago"
Nevertheless, that original large purchase of Apple stock by Microsoft helped save Apple AT THE TIME !
( But the Mac Taliban just won't admit even the most obvious things. )
Did Microsoft buy that Apple stock out of pure good will ...or out of self-interest ?
Self-interest. Microsoft is a ~bussiness~ and NOT a charity !
Regardless, the effect was to help save Apple.
The Computer Rodent
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|the main thing that kept Apple around was KA inovation on the high end. Now MS needs Apple to do the creative R&D. Check out Apple high end before you cry iPod only.
http://smartdelivery.wat...Reel-macTVExclusive.mp4
"its about the work"
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