Web Programmers

by Galen Gruman

InfoWorld’s “Save XP” petition asking Microsoft to keep Windows XP available indefinitely, not end most sales on June 30 as currently planned, has prompted many readers to suggest that maybe the best answer for those who don’t like Vista is to switch to another operating system completely.

“Don’t be afraid. Just switch to Linux and become a member of a really free society,” wrote Carlos Raul Gutierrez.

“Windows Vista was the reason I bought a Mac mini. I didn’t want my only choices to be an operating system that would soon be obsolete (XP) or one that was buggy and would break much existing hardware (Vista), and I’m not enough of a geek to use Linux (do things from the command line? Puhleeze…),” wrote “Jack.”

How realistic is a switch to Linux or Apple’s Mac OS X? For some users — often technically savvy people such as engineers, consultants, designers and CTOs — it is clearly an option that already works quite well. In the past year, running Mac OS X or Linux as your default OS has been made easier by the capability to run Windows in a virtual machine, giving you access to both Windows-only applications and Web sites that rely on Microsoft’s Internet Explorer-only ActiveX technology. But in a business environment, switching to a Mac or Linux PC may not be quite as easy.

The Mac OS X option Of the plausible alternatives to Windows, Apple’s Mac OS X has the largest market share and history. InfoWorld chief technologist Tom Yager has written that the latest version of the Mac OS, Leopard (10.5), is simply the best operating system available. And Macs are indeed popping up more frequently even within IT circles — I’ve seen more MacBook Pros in the hands of CTOs and IT execs at conferences in the past year more than I’ve seen Mac notebooks in such venues ever. Although there are no real numbers on just the business adoption of Macs, it’s clear that Apple is in growth mode, gaining an increasing proportion of all new computer sales for more than a year now.

InfoWorld’s Yager has chronicled the adventures of one PC user who switched to the Mac OS, showing that for an individual, the conversion was ultimately a rewarding one. The TechWeb site has also provided a good guide on how to make the switch to Mac OS X.

A key tool for any Mac OS X switcher is a virtual machine to run Windows for those apps and Web sites that require it. Both Parallels Desktop 3.0 and EMC VMware’s Fusion software will do the trick, as InfoWorld’s comparative review has shown.

Although Macs are compatible with most typical hardware, such as monitors and drives, fitting a Mac into an enterprise’s management systems and ERP applications can be a different story. Yager’s Mac Enterprise blog and the Mac Enterprise user group both provide advice on managing Macs in a traditional IT environment.

The Linux option The more technically inclined may be attracted to Linux, the most popular form of desktop Unix. Linux desktops typically are challenged by limited hardware compatibility (due to lack of drivers), limited application options, and user interfaces that require active participation to get work done, which tends to keep Linux away from the general user population. But those who work with a Linux server all day may find that using it on the desktop as well actually makes their lives easier.

Just as Mac users need occasional access to Windows, so do Linux users. Because Linux distributions run on Windows-compatible hardware, it’s straightforward to use desktop virtualization software, such as Parallels Workstation, Sun’s (formerly Innotek’s) VirtualBox, and EMC VMware’s Workstation software, to provide access to both environments.

Although some enterprises have committed to wide Linux deployment — such as automaker Peugeot Citro??n’s plans to install 20,000 Novell Suse Linux desktops — most have left Linux to the engineering and development staff.

InfoWorld Enterprise Desktop blogger Randall Kennedy argues that desktop Linux is doomed to remain a tiny niche OS, given the Linux community’s lack of interest in providing a UI that regular people could use. Kennedy tried to spend a week working on nothing but the Ubuntu distribution of Linux but gave up on the fifth day.

But Kennedy’s take isn’t the last word on desktop Linux. Frequent InfoWorld contributor Neil McAllister put together a special report on how to move from Windows to Linux, concluding that the effort was not as hard as you might think.

Who’s right? As with any platform choice, they both may be. A one-size-fits-all approach may be unrealistic. And that likely explains why many businesses will have a mix, dominated by Windows XP today (and perhaps Vista in a few years) but not exclusively tied to Microsoft’s OS.

By Mary Jo Foley

Following reports by users of problems resulting from new Vista Service Pack (SP) 1 installation prerequisite update – which Microsoft pushed out via Windows Update last week — Microsoft has halted availability of those prerequisites.

Microsoft announced on February 19 via the Vista Team Blog its decision to stop the distribution of the Vista SP1 prerequisites.

Vista Product Manager Nick White posted the following update:

“Immediately after receiving reports of this error, we made the decision to temporarily suspend automatic distribution of the update to avoid further customer impact while we investigate possible causes.

“So far, we’ve been able to determine that this problem only affects a small number of customers in unique circumstances. We are working to identify possible solutions and will make the update available again shortly after we address the issue.

“Customers who may be experiencing this issue can use system restore to correct it or contact 1-866-PC-Safety for help troubleshooting. Additional guidance will be available via Microsoft’s free Update Support Center soon.”

Last week wasn’t the first time endless reboot problems were reported by Vista users. In fact, there were reports of endless-reboot-loop problems from some Vista SP1 users dating back to late January, before Microsoft distributed the prerequisites for SP1 — right around the time the company delivered the final bits (in the form of the Vista Service Pack 1 Release Candidate 1 Refresh 2 build).

By Håkon Wium Lie

Two years ago, the Acid2 test was announced in this column. Acid2 is a complex Web browser test page that shows a smiley face when rendered correctly.

The test, published by the Web Standards Project, has been a tremendous success in weeding out browser bugs that stop Web designers from reaching pixel perfection in their pages. Safari and Opera ship Acid2-compliant versions, and the upcoming Firefox 3 will also pass the test.

Recently, Microsoft announced that Internet Explorer version 8 can render Acid2, and it showed a screenshot to back the claim. The news was received with joy and excitement in the Web-authoring community.

“Finally, it seems, Microsoft has decided to take Web standards seriously. Designers will no longer have to spend countless hours trying to get their pages to look right in Internet Explorer while adhering to standards. Unfortunately, I think that the celebration is premature.”

Finally, it seems, Microsoft has decided to take Web standards seriously. Designers will no longer have to spend countless hours trying to get their pages to look right in Internet Explorer while adhering to standards. Unfortunately, I think that the celebration is premature. I predict that IE 8 will not pass Acid2, after all.

But first, a few words about the next Acid test, soon to be published by the Web Standards Project: Acid3.

Acid3 will follow in the footsteps of Acid1 and Acid2; it’s a tough one-page test that displays a quirky graphic when rendered correctly. No browser will pass the test at the time of its release. All vendors are equally challenged.

Whereas Acid2 was a static Web page, Acid3 will be a dynamic Web application. When browsers are improved to pass Acid3, it will become easier to write Web applications that work interoperably across browsers.

Acid3 is written for and by the Web community. Ian Hickson is the editor of the test. While he has a unique ability to write test cases that expose bugs in all browsers, he has also asked for help from others. Code contributions are welcome.

Acid2 and Acid3 both state that they should be tested using the default settings of the browser. Web usability consultant Jakob Nielsen has discussed the power of defaults for search results. It applies to many other areas as well.

People are more likely to use the default browser than an alternate browser. They are more likely to save a document in the default format than in an optional format. And they are more likely to display Web documents using the browsers’ default settings than to change the settings.

This brings me back to Microsoft and my prediction that IE 8 will not pass Acid2. I suspect that IE 8 will, at best, support standards in a circuitous way–they will exert the power of default.

What will happen when you type http://webstandards.org/acid2 in your freshly installed IE 8? Will Acid2 be displayed correctly when you hit the test button?

Microsoft has been asked that question, but it has not given an answer. I think that the company is considering three possible scenarios.

One scenario could be that IE 8 will require users or authors to “opt in” to support standards. For example, in order to render Acid2 correctly, users could be required to modify IE 8’s default settings. This breaks with the guidelines of the test, and IE 8 will therefore not pass in this scenario.

A second scenario could be that Microsoft requires Web pages to change the default settings by flagging that they really, really want to be rendered correctly. Web pages already have a way to say this (called “doctype switching,” which is supported by all browsers), but Microsoft has all but announced that IE 8 will support yet another scheme.

If it decides to implement the new scheme, the Acid2 test–and all the other pages that use doctype switching–will not be rendered correctly.

A third scenario could be to hard-code the Web address of Acid2 into IE 8. This way, the page is given special treatment to make it look like the browser is passing the test. It should be obvious that this breaks the spirit of the test and doesn’t warrant a passing grade.

I predict that Microsoft will implement at least one of these scenarios to limit the impact of standards. This would be damaging for the Web, and I therefore hope that my prediction is completely and absolutely wrong. The IE 8 team has shown that it can render Acid2 correctly. Now it’s time for Microsoft to put its code to good use.

Biography
Håkon Wium Lie is chief technology officer of Opera Software. Before joining Opera in 1999, he worked at W3C where he was responsible for the development of Cascading Style Sheets, a concept he proposed while working with Tim Berners-Lee at CERN in 1994.

Ribbit, a Silicon Valley start-up that lets software programmers embed phone-like voice features in everything from Web sites to computers to phones themselves, unveiled its first product for consumers on Monday.

Ribbit is introducing a service, called Amphibian, that plays on the notion that its technology works in and out of the water–making voice features found on customers’ phones accessible on their computers or via many Web sites.

“We are merging computers and telephony in a true sense,” said Crick Waters, Ribbit’s vice president of strategy, who played a key role in starting several Internet businesses at former employers AT&T and NorthPoint Communications.

Amphibian–set to be launched during the first quarter–will be announced this week in Palm Desert, Calif., at Demo, a semi-annual conference that serves as a launch pad for new, up-and-coming technology companies.

Consumers can have two-way phone conversations through Web pages. Incoming calls can be sent to voicemail for automatic transcription, allowing them to be read back or forwarded like e-mail on computers or on mobile phones. This feature is made possible by voicemail transcription service SimulScribe.

The technology uses Flash and Flex design software from Adobe Systems, allowing developers to build “virtual phones” that run as computer applications or work on Web sites. More than 2,500 developers have signed up to build Ribbit services.

In a telecommunications industry dominated by proprietary software built and controlled by individual network operators, Ribbit presents an alternative using standard Web development tools.

As a start-up with limited resources, Ribbit must move carefully in a market dominated not only by incumbent phone equipment makers Cisco Systems and Avaya covet, but where Google and Microsoft have becoming aggressive players.

Waters said the company is setting out to give individual users, be they business professionals or consumers at home, the freedom to pick and choose specific telecommunication services. Ribbit software hooks up standard phone services to the Web.

Users simply forward their mobile phone numbers to Ribbit, which delivers the calls back to personalized Amphibian Web pages that offer a series of unified communications features.

Pricing has yet to be determined, Ribbit executives said, but they added that they are considering charging $10 a month for retrieving 40 voicemails via text. An unlimited transcription service might run $15 or so a month, they added.

While the company initially has focused on demonstrating the technology’s usefulness to businesses, telephone carriers, and software developers, Ribbit’s new push aims to popularize the power of its software, dubbed “voiceware,” for regular consumers.

Ribbit plans to showcase how users of personalized Web pages from Facebook, Google, MySpace, or Netvibes, as well as business-contact management applications like Salesforce, can take phone calls via their Web pages using Amphibian.

As a demonstration of the power of Ribbit, one independent developer using new Adobe AIR software has built a full-featured version of Apple’s iPhone that works on Web pages.

IDC analyst Will Stofega cautions that some of what Ribbit is showing is merely “the latest stupid phone tricks” rather than a stand-alone business. But the flexibility that Ribbit gives developers of telecommunications software could prove the sort of powerful alternative to spark rapid change in the industry.

Ribbit also introduced an online marketplace for users to find new voiceware applications that have been created using its software.

The company raised $13 million funding from investors including Alsop-Louie Partners, Jean-Louis Gassee’s Allegis Capital, and KPG Ventures.

For more information, visit http://www.ribbit.com/