silverlight-logo.pngFirst things first - i am a huge fan of Adobe Flash - it’s been the only universal basis for a rich web experience for years. But i’m all for some healthy competition to drive things forward and welcome the official launch of Microsoft Silverlight.

Microsoft Silverlight, for those not familar with the new development environment, is a new platform that provides a basis to create graphical and event driven web applications, similar to the ones that Adobe Flash allows. It’s key selling point is that it provides desktop functionality online.

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For those less techie types like me - put simply, it makes for a more interactive and intuitive web experience than ever before. One of the first applications released using the Silverlight platform is the Tafiti search service which i blogged about recently. Some other apps worth checking out are the Microsoft Popfly (Microsoft’s Mashup application - think Yahoo! Tubes) and when it’s launched - Livestation (an interactive Live TV/Video concept).

popfly.pngOne of the best parts of the Silverlight platform is the lightness (file size, not weight) and speed of the web applications it creates. Download speeds and file sizes have been the key inhibiting factors to faster Rich Internet Application development. With the power and speed of Silverlight - coupled with the rapid adoption of broadband - the web experience as we know it is destined to explode.

Microsoft’s chief software architect Ray Ozzie summed up Microsoft’s vision and plans with the Silverlight release:

“Our expectations for compelling, immersive experiences on the Web are increasing daily…With today’s release of Silverlight 1.0, we’re making it possible for developers and designers to deliver to individuals the kind of high-def experiences they crave by integrating data and services in rich and unique ways. Silverlight will further accelerate the growth in rich interactive applications by giving developers and designers new options for delivering great experiences that span the Web, PC, phone and other devices.”

Silverlight provides cross browser support on Windows, MacOS and suprisingly (but commendably so) on Linux thanks to a partnership with Novell. This will keep developers from all backgrounds happy and more importantly for Microsoft will encourage quicker adoption of the environment

What can I say - high definition rich interactive media that’s fast to download and captivating - it’s a digital marketers dream. Developers - start your engines!!!

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