Month: April 2005

The Java Blueprints Catalogue project has documented the much talked about AJAX pattern -Asynchronous Javascript with XML.

Although not new technology, this type of client/server type realtime interaction with the user via the browser is picking up interest again, as a means to offer a more ‘compelling user experience’ to the user.

This is interesting because I worked on a project in 1998 where we evaluated the use and prototyped AJAX type functionality for a browser-based application, but dismissed the approach as trying to hard to replicate traditional client/server type functionality in the browser. Strange how things come around back into fashion again…

Google Suggest is the best example I’ve seen recently using this approach – take a look at http://www.google.com/webhp?complete=1&hl=en

News.com have some preview images of a Longhorn demo to the press. Doesn’t look that spectacular or eye catching, but visual improvements are promised, such as translucent windows, and document icons that show a preview of the content of the actual document or file.

Microsoft have started to preview Longhorn, the next major Windows release, to members of the press.

No sight of the WinFS revamped file system, but some of the new features sound like they will improve usability, for example, the file finder, which helps you find the last file you edited, based on content keywords, author name etc.

Comparison are also being made against the next version of Mac OS X which is due to be released in 2 weeks time. Longhorn isn’t due to possibly next year.

Netcraft’s latest Webserver Survey continues to show Microsoft IIS site installations declining, while Apache still is gaining in popularity.

IIS reached it’s maximum number of website installations at around 35% of total websites in 2002, but has been declining ever since.

Apache HTTPD on the otherhand has a continuously increasing number of servers, currently around 75% of all installed servers, at approx 43 million.