Move over XHTML!

I won’t deny it, but XHTML is a beautiful language. It’s is vast and is practicably translatable on every computer. It is based off GML which many other well known languages are based off, but I am going to look into the future and tell you what I can see in my crystal ball…

“Over the next 5-10 years XHTML will phase out as the main language that is interpreted by the browser. The language that will exist will be a compiled language that will need a runtime to run it. Now don’t get scared! You don’t have to learn formal programming skills to code with this new language. This is because this new wonderful language will be based off GML as well. The difference to what you are doing now to what you will be doing in the future is compiling it before you give it to the world to see. “

For web sites to become more interactive and more diverse in what they can do, a stronger language has to be used. Right now XHTML is for presentation only. It can’t perform actions with out the help of JavasScript. JavaScript will be upgraded to 2.0 shortly, which will enable vast improvements, but will it make a difference. Hell yes! It will put it into the league every one else is playing. AJAX will vastly improve and blow people away.

Javascript 2.0 is based off EMCAScript Edition 4, which is the same as ActionScript 3.0. This means that JavaScript 2.0 will have power, that same power as ActionScript 3.0. I believe that eventually XHTML will be called something else and it will be designed like MXML or XAML (Microsoft Silverlight version of MXML). It will represent different classes as tags for easy building.

But like I said above I’m only looking into my crystal ball to the future, and of course it is hazy.

July 6, 2008
Tags: AJAX, JavaScript, MXML, XHTML

Flex 4.0 - What’s to come!

With Adobe Flex 4.0 to be launch in 2009 makes you wonder what they’re going to have in Flex 4.0 that they don’t have right now.

First off Thermo! Thermo will be new tool for the Flex developer community. It’s going to make it incredibly easy for a designer to design an application so the developer only has to code the actions to the design. It will help separate the development stage from the design. Having a work flow like this makes the end RIA a better performing application, which is also visually stunning. It allows the developer to concentrate on one thing and one thing only, development; vice versa for a designer.

Fig 1.0: Screen shot of the Main interface for Thermo

Improvements will also be made to MXML to make it even easier to develop with. Improvements such as new components, for example new vector primitive graphic tags. These tags will help in developing custom components as you will be able to draw primitive shapes directly through MXML.

Of course there are going to be improvements to the framework so that overall performance will be increased.

I think the 4.0 version will be released around the same time as CS4 as the interoperability will be amazing.

It is still a while off before the actual release of the next version, but this is for sure, Adobe is going to amaze us with the new capabilities and improvements.

July 5, 2008
Tags: Flex, MXML, RIA, Thermo