Say what you will about the company, I am one of the more vocal supporters of Microsoft. I like their products. My computers don't crash. My computers do develop and render beautiful graphics - three Adobe products running at once. Oh, and it all runs on Vista.
Of course, I adore Adobe too. I have been using it since the days when I used it to crash my ex's Apple :o). And Macromedia? Dreamweaver, Freehand and I have spent may hours together. When Adobe swallowed Macromedia I was a little saddend at the downfall of the company that always seemed to be in Adobe's shadow; and yet, I could see the possiblities that this union could yield!
And yield it did. Today, the Creative Suite is a magnificent union of so many great graphic and web design products. What else could we ask for? It seems that Microsoft thinks that they know.
I just found out about Microsoft Silverlight. I guess it's official release was in May, but who has time to pour over all of these press announcements? My husband does, apparently. He's a web developer (as in, miles and miles of Visual Basic code - barely speaks of lick of HTML...). He told the Silverlight tale with a twinkle in his eye. I, myself, was conflicted. Adobe is a web design beast, they (including Macromedia) simply revolutionized the web "experience". Their products have changed media, advertising, information exchange, gaming - you name it. If it involves a broadband connection, Adobe/Macromedia probably made it better. Yet Microsoft is a power to be respected (feared by some). Whatever you believe about Mac OS, Linux, etc., you have to give Microsoft credit for making computers and computer applications accessable to the masses. They changed computing (let's not argue if they stole it from Apple - I will poke you in the eye).Microsoft has been claiming that they want to bring the internet to our desktops, to make the computer an experience that reaches beyond our homes and offices and out into the world. Silverlight is their first major venture in the "internet experience" department. So, now I'm conflicted. I fear for Adobe's safety (well, only a little), and yet I'm intrigued at the possiblities that Microsoft promises. Another part of me is excited. After all, in our "free market," competition is the mother of invention...
So, what is Silverlight? It is, in a way, Microsoft's answer to Flash, and in a way it is different. Silverlight is a "proprietary runtime for browser-based Rich Internet Applications (RIAs)" and media. Like Flash, it provides means to make web interaction richer and more of an "experience" to the user/viewer. It integrates graphics, multimedia, animation and interactivity into one "runtime". Like Flash, it has an easily downloaded and launched viewer. Silverlight claims to be cross compatible with most major browsers, and it is also cross-browser compatible (Windows, Linus, MacOS, UNIX). Note: Silverlight is called "Moonlight" on the Unix platform.
So, the question is, what are the major differences? From a general perspective, Silverlight has a few advantages (at the time of this posting, I have no doubt that Adobe will do what it needs to to catch up):
- Currently, the advantage receiveing the most hype is that Silverlight uses XML formatted content. Content is not compiled, but rather it is represented as text in XAML (an XML based markup language). This presents a major advantage in that text is easily indexed by search engines, making Silverlight content easily accessed by search engines such as Google.
- Silverlight offers the ability to run "industry standard" media formats such as .wmv and .mp3 without a separate codec. It does not require Windows Media player or Windows Active X controls to run these formats.
- It offers "Scaleable" graphics that can run in formats ranging from High Definition to Mobile.
While these features are intriguing, they are probably not enough to turn the tide on Adobe CS. Indeed, some of the advantages/disadvantages to either of these programs may be in the eye of the user. These opinions may be based in the perceptions of web developers vs. web designers. Web developers work in the background of websites, dealing in server and database code foreign to most designers. By the same coin, web designers deal with programs and languages (Action Script, HTML, XML, CSS, etc.) not often used by developers. Because of this, developers often find themselves at the mercy of designers when it comes to the look and logic of a website. While this may be for the best, Silverlight does offer web developers a foothold into the design aspect of websites, offering them design tools in languages that are familiar to them:
- Silverlight is based on the Microsoft .Net framework, meaning that developers can use a variety of tools already at their disposal to work with Silverlight.
- One of several common languages can be used for development, including: Javascript, Ruby, Python, C# and VisualBasic.Net.
- Developers can work on Silverlight in Microsoft's Visual Studio, a program that many are already familiar with or using for web development.
On the other hand, when dealing with web designers, Adobe will probably continue to have the upper hand for a good long time. The Adobe suite of design tools and long been the industry standard in both traditional and web-based media:
- Adobe has a massive market penetration in this arena. The company may have started with printed media, but they have become the major force in the web design industry; especially with the acquisition of Macromedia.
- The new Creative Suite offers amazing integration for designers. Tools for raster graphics, vector graphics, animation and interactivity are all available in the same suite. This allows designers to easily swap items between programs with little chance of incompatibility.
- Designers are very familiar with Adobe and Macromedia products. While CS3 may be new, the programs inside are old friends, and now they work even better together. Microsofts' offering, Microsoft Expression, is simply unfamiliar ground onto which designers may be unwilling to tread. Designers will be hard-pressed to learn these new programs when they have a very comprehensive suite of programs that they've been using for years.
- We know that Adobe's programs work. Beyond familiarity, designers trust that Adobe products will do what they promise. Microsoft will have to win the confidence of consumers before they can hope to make a dent.
- The last disadvantage is more obscure. Microsoft itself is, simply, not trusted by designers. The stigma that has long plagued Microsoft (which I heartily disagree with), is that it cannot compete with Mac and Adobe in the design arena. While this perception may be slowly changing, many established designers are still working on Macs, a system that has been paired with Adobe since the beginning. These people are going to be hard-pressed to change over to a Microsoft product any time soon.
For the short term, Adobe probably has the upper hand. Years of experience, research, integration and a well-deserved reputation will probably keep Adobe ahead for now. Undoubtedly, whatever advances Microsoft makes in this arena will be copied by Adobe soon enough, and vice-versa. Microsoft does have the finances and the contacts to give Adobe a run for it's money, however. Ultimately, probably neither company will win or lose. Instead, designers and developers alike will have their preferences, and now they simply have more to choose from.
Whatever side your alliances lie with, in the end the "winners" will be internet designers, developers and users. The competition will undoubtedly lead to great innovations in the field of website integration, making the web a more exciting, entertaining, educational and useful experience for everyone.
Want to see Silverlight? Download the runtime: http://silverlight.net/GetStarted/
Once you have that, check out some Silverlight Samples and Silverlight Partners
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