Almost two months ago I posted on rich internet application (RIA) options. Silverlight was one of those we covered. What was interesting to note is that Microsoft supports multiple platforms with Silverlight so it’s not just a windows play.
You can use it with a variety of browsers and with Linux, Mac, etc. It is a direct competitor to Flex and an almost direct competitor to AJAX. All of these technologies can be accesses by any of the major portal vendor products like WebSphere Portal, WebCenter, Liferay, and JBoss/Gatein Portal……..and of course Sharepoint.
Via eWeek, Microsoft has just released its roadmap for Silverlight.
Silverlight is a platform for creating and delivering rich Internet applications and media experiences on the Web. Silverlight 5 builds on the foundation of Silverlight 4 for building business applications, premium media applications and applications that reach beyond the browser, Microsoft said. Silverlight 5 introduces more than 40 new features, including support for running Silverlight applications with desktop features in the browser, enhanced video quality and performance improvements, and features that improve developer productivity. The Silverlight 5 beta will be available sometime in the first half of 2011, and will release to the web later in the year, Microsoft said. More information will be available at http://www.microsoft.com/silverlight.
Silverlight 5 offers improved media support and rich UI capabilities, such as Hardware Decode and presentation of H.264 improve performance for lower-power devices to render high-definition video using GPU support. And the TrickPlay feature allows video to be played at different speeds and supports fast-forward and rewind. At up to twice the speed, audio pitch correction allows users to watch videos while preserving a normal audio pitch.
