2005/03/25 Zero Install

© March 2005 Tony Lawrence

Hmmm.. if this does catch on, it's going to need a better name. I suggest "WebRun"..

But it's not going to catch on, is it? The basic idea here is similar to thin client computing; though the Zero Install Web Page authors don't like that description, and they are correct. It's a little different. That's at least part of the problem, though: it isn't easy to immediately see the advantages of this.

However, if you could get a large number of people to at least have the capability of using it, then it might be great for demos and also for applications where the installation is exceptionally diffficult. This has an advantage over Remote Desktop or other thin client programs as the app is running locally; it's just been cached from a remote site. Another advantage is that you aren't forced to upgrade - once you have brought down the working program, it can keep running from cache for as long as you want.

I remain a little hesitant, but you might read https://freshmeat.net/articles/view/1049/ and see what you think. Tim Berners-Lee has written a good overview of Installation, Catalogs, and Caches that is worth reading also.

Got something to add? Send me email.

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