Editing Rich Internet Application

{{Short description|Web application technology}}
{{About|legacy technology no longer used by modern browsers|its modern equivalent|Progressive web application}}

A '''Rich Internet Application''' (also known as a '''rich web application''',<ref name="flex3dummies">{{cite book |last=McCune |first=Doug |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lazbXwrxrasC |title=Adobe Flex 3.0 For Dummies |date=2009-02-23 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0470436820 |page=Chapter 1, "From HTML to RIA"}}</ref> '''RIA''' or '''installable Internet application''') is a [[web application]] that has many of the characteristics of desktop [[application software]]. The concept is closely related to a [[single-page application]], and may allow the user interactive features such as [[drag and drop]], background menu, [[WYSIWYG]] editing, etc. The concept was first introduced in 2002 by [[Macromedia]] to describe Macromedia Flash MX product (which later became [[Adobe Flash]]).<ref name=":0">[http://download.macromedia.com/pub/flash/whitepapers/richclient.pdf Macromedia Flash MX—A next-generation rich client]</ref> Throughout the 2000s, the term was generalized to describe browser-based applications developed with other competing browser plugin technologies including [[Java applet|Java applets]], [[Microsoft Silverlight]].

With the [[Deprecation#Software|deprecation]] of browser [[Plug-in (computing)|plugin]] interfaces and transition to standard [[HTML5]] technologies, Rich Internet Applications were replaced with JavaScript [[Web application|web applications]], including [[Single-page application|single-page applications]] and [[Progressive web application|progressive web applications]].

==History==
The terms "Rich Internet Application" and "rich client" were introduced in a [[white paper]] of March 2002 by [[Macromedia]] (now [[Adobe Inc.|Adobe]]),<ref name=":0" /> though the concept had existed for a number of years earlier under names including: "[[remote scripting|Remote Scripting]]" by [[Microsoft]] in April 1999<ref>{{cite web|last=Clinick|first=Andrew|date=1999-04-12|title=Remote Scripting|url=https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/previous-versions/windows/internet-explorer/ie-developer/scripting-articles/ms974566(v=msdn.10)|access-date=2019-07-10|website=[[Microsoft Docs]]|df=dmy}}</ref> and the "X Internet" by [[Forrester Research]] in October 2000.<ref>{{cite web|last=Colony|first=George F.|date=October 2000|title=My View: X Internet|url=http://www.forrester.com/ER/Marketing/0,1503,214,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080518194414/http://www.forrester.com/ER/Marketing/0,1503,214,00.html|archive-date=2008-05-18|website=[[Forrester Research]]|df=dmy}}</ref>

In November 2011, there were a number of announcements that demonstrated a decline in demand for Rich Internet Application architectures based on browser plug-ins in order to favor [[HTML5]] alternatives. Adobe announced that Flash would no longer be produced for mobile<ref>{{cite web|title=Adobe Flash Player Turfed for Mobile Devices|url=http://www.theinfoboom.com/articles/adobe-flash-player-turfed-for-mobile-devices/|access-date=11 November 2011}}</ref>  or TV<ref>{{cite web|title=Adobe Scrapping Flash for TV, Too|url=http://allthingsd.com/20111110/adobe-scrapping-flash-for-tv-too%E2%80%8E/|access-date=11 November 2011}}</ref> (refocusing its efforts on [[Adobe AIR]]). Pundits questioned its continued relevance even on the desktop<ref>{{cite web|title=PlayBook has a Flash-filled future; RIM's worst decision to date?|website=[[ZDNet]] |url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/without-mobile-adobe-flash-is-irrelevant/}}</ref> and described it as "the beginning of the end".<ref>{{cite web|title=The beginning of the end for Adobe's Flash|url=https://money.cnn.com/2011/11/10/technology/adobe_flash/|access-date=11 November 2011}}</ref> [[BlackBerry (company)|Research In Motion]] (RIM) announced that it would continue to develop Flash for the [[BlackBerry PlayBook|PlayBook]], a decision questioned by some commentators.<ref>{{cite web|title=PlayBook has a Flash-filled future; RIM's worst decision to date?|website=[[ZDNet]] |url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/playbook-has-a-flash-filled-future-rims-worst-decision-to-date/|access-date=11 November 2011}}</ref> Rumors stated that Microsoft was to abandon Silverlight after the upcoming release of version 5 -- this would later turn out to be the case.<ref>{{cite web|title=Silverlight 5 - the end of the line|url=http://www.i-programmer.info/news/89-net/3314-silverlight-5-the-end-of-the-line.html|access-date=11 November 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Silverlight End of Support - Microsoft Support |url=https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/silverlight-end-of-support-0a3be3c7-bead-e203-2dfd-74f0a64f1788 |access-date=2023-04-01 |website=support.microsoft.com}}</ref> The combination of these announcements had some proclaiming it "the end of the line for browser plug-ins".<ref>{{cite web|title=Flash, Silverlight and the end of the line for browser plug-ins|date=10 November 2011 |url=http://www.geekwire.com/2011/adobe-flash-microsoft-silverlight-sunset-browser-plugin}}</ref>

=== Rich mobile applications ===
A '''rich mobile application''' (RMA) is a [[mobile application]] that inherits numerous properties from web applications and features several explicit properties, such as [[context awareness]] and ubiquity.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Khan|first1=Atta ur Rehman|last2=Othman|first2=Mazliza|last3=Khan|first3=Abdul Nasir|last4=Abid|first4=Shahbaz Akhtar|last5=Madani|first5=Sajjad Ahmad|date=2015-04-23|title=MobiByte: An Application Development Model for Mobile Cloud Computing|journal=Journal of Grid Computing|language=en|volume=13|issue=4|pages=605–628|doi=10.1007/s10723-015-9335-x|issn=1570-7873}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Khan|first1=A. u R.|last2=Othman|first2=M.|last3=Xia|first3=F.|last4=Khan|first4=A. N.|date=2015-05-01|title=Context-Aware Mobile Cloud Computing and Its Challenges|journal=IEEE Cloud Computing|volume=2|issue=3|pages=42–49|doi=10.1109/MCC.2015.62|issn=2325-6095}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> RMAs are "energy efficient, multi-tier, online mobile applications originated from the convergence of [[mobile cloud computing]], future web, and imminent communication technologies envisioning to deliver rich user experience via high functionality, immersive interaction, and crisp response in a secure wireless environment while enabling context-awareness, offline usability, portability, and data ubiquity".<ref name="RMA_article">{{cite journal|last1=Abolfazli|first1=Saeid|last2=Sanaei|first2=Zohreh|last3=Gani|first3=Abdullah|last4=Xia|first4=Feng|last5=Yang|first5=Laurence T.|date=1 September 2013|title=Rich Mobile Applications: Genesis, taxonomy, and open issues|journal=Journal of Network and Computer Applications|volume=40|pages=345–362|doi=10.1016/j.jnca.2013.09.009}}</ref>

==== Origins of RMAs ====
After successful deployment of web applications to desktop computers and the increasing popularity of mobile devices, researchers brought these enhanced web application functionalities to the smartphone platform. [[NTT DoCoMo]] of Japan adopted [[Adobe Flash Lite]] in 2003 to enhance mobile applications' functionality. In 2008, Google brought [[Gears (software)|Google Gears]] to [[Windows Mobile]] 5 and 6 devices to support platform-neutral mobile applications in offline mode. Google Gears for mobile devices is a mobile browser extension for developing web applications enriched by a separate, user-installable add-on. These applications can be executed inside the mobile device with a web browser regardless of the architecture, operating system and technology. In April 2008, Microsoft introduced [[Microsoft Silverlight]] mobile to develop engaging, interactive UIs for mobile devices. Silverlight is a .NET plug-in compatible with several mobile browsers that runs the Silverlight-enabled mobile apps. [[Android (operating system)|Android]] accommodated the Google Gear plug-in in the Google Chrome Lite browser to improve the interaction experience of Android end-users.

==Technologies==

===Adobe Flash===
{{Main article|Adobe Flash}}

Adobe Flash manipulated [[vector graphics|vector]] and [[raster graphics]] to provide animation of text, drawings, and still images. It supported bidirectional [[Streaming media|streaming]] of audio and video, and it could capture user input via mouse, keyboard, microphone, and camera. Flash contained an [[object-oriented language]] called [[ActionScript]] and supported automation via the JavaScript Flash language (JSFL). Flash content could be displayed on various computer systems and [[information appliance|devices]], using [[Adobe Flash Player]], which was available free of charge for common web browsers, some [[mobile phone]]s and a few other [[electronic device]]s (using [[Flash Lite]]).<ref>{{Cite book |last1=McCune |first1=Doug |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lazbXwrxrasC |title=Adobe Flex 3.0 For Dummies |last2=Subramaniam |first2=Deepa |date=2009-02-23 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-0-470-43682-0 |language=en}}</ref>

[[Apache Flex]], formerly Adobe Flex, is a [[software development kit]] (SDK) for the development and deployment of cross-platform RIAs based on the [[Adobe Flash]] platform. Initially developed by [[Macromedia]] and then acquired by [[Adobe Systems]], Flex was donated by Adobe to the [[Apache Software Foundation]] in 2011.

Adobe deprecated Flash in 2017, and the Adobe Flash Player was discontinued in most markets by early 2021.

===Java applet===
{{Main article|Java applet}}
Java applets were used to create [[Interactive visualization|interactive visualizations]] and to present video, three-dimensional objects and other media. Java applets were appropriate for complex visualizations that required significant programming effort in a high level language or communications between applet and originating server.

===JavaFX===
{{Main article|JavaFX}}
JavaFX is a software platform for creating and delivering RIAs that can run across a wide variety of connected devices. The current release (JavaFX 12, March 11, 2019) enables building applications for desktop, browser and mobile phones and comes with 3D support. TV set-top boxes, gaming consoles, Blu-ray players and other platforms are planned. Java FX runs as plug-in Java applet or via [[Webstart]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=JavaFX 2.2 Release Notes {{!}} JavaFX 2 Tutorials and Documentation |url=https://docs.oracle.com/javafx/2/release_notes_2-2/jfxpub-release_notes_2-2.htm |access-date=2022-11-24 |website=docs.oracle.com}}</ref>

===Microsoft Silverlight===
{{Main article|Microsoft Silverlight}}
Silverlight was proposed by Microsoft as another proprietary alternative. The technology has not been widely accepted and, for instance, lacks support on many mobile devices. Some examples of application were video streaming for events including the [[2008 Summer Olympics]] in Beijing,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2008/01/06/microsoft-silverlight-gets-a-high-profile-win-2008-bejing-olympics/ |title=Microsoft Silverlight Gets a High Profile Win: 2008 Beijing Olympics|date=7 January 2008 | access-date=2010-02-23}}</ref> the [[2010 Winter Olympics]] in Vancouver,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-wins-the-2010-olympics-for-silverlight-2009-3 |title=Microsoft Wins The 2010 Olympics For Silverlight|website=[[Business Insider]] | access-date=2010-02-23}}</ref> and the 2008 conventions for both major political parties in the United States.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/features/2008/aug08/08-19conventions.mspx |title=Microsoft Working to Make Political Conventions Unconventional |website=[[Microsoft]] |access-date=2010-02-23 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100519135325/http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/features/2008/aug08/08-19conventions.mspx |archive-date=2010-05-19 }}</ref> Silverlight was also used by [[Netflix]] for its instant video streaming service.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://netflix.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=288 |title=Netflix Begins Roll-Out of 2nd Generation Media Player for Instant Streaming on Windows PCs and Intel Macs |access-date=2010-02-23 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100529122655/http://netflix.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=288 |archive-date=2010-05-29 }}</ref> Silverlight is no longer under active development and is not supported in [[Microsoft Edge Legacy]] or newer.

=== Gears ===
{{Main|Gears (software)}}
''Gears'', formerly known as ''Google Gears'', is a discontinued [[utility software]] providing offline storage and other additional features to web browsers, including [[Google Chrome]]. Gears was discontinued in favor of the standardized [[HTML5]] methods. Gears was removed from Google Chrome 12.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Chrome Stable Release|url=https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2011/06/chrome-stable-release.html|access-date=2021-04-12|website=Chrome Releases|language=en}}</ref>

===Other techniques===
RIAs could use [[XForms]] to enhance their functionality.{{citation needed|date=November 2016}}{{original research inline|date=November 2016}} Using [[XML]] and [[XSLT]]<ref name="Transformation">{{cite web|url=http://www.w3.org/standards/xml/transformation |title=Transformation|date=2012-09-19}}</ref> along with some [[XHTML]], CSS and JavaScript can also be used to generate richer client side UI components like data tables that can be resorted locally on the client without going back to the server. Mozilla and Internet Explorer browsers both support this.

==Security issues in older standards==
RIAs present indexing challenges to [[Web search engine]]s, but [[Adobe Flash]] content is now at least partially indexable.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2008/06/30/once-nearly-invisible-to-search-engines-flash-files-can-now-be-found-and-indexed/|title=Once Nearly Invisible To Search Engines, Flash Files Can Now Be Found And Indexed|author=Erick Schonfeld|publisher=AOL|work=TechCrunch|date=July 2008 |access-date=2 May 2015}}</ref>

Security can improve over that of [[application software]] (for example through use of [[sandbox (computer security)|sandbox]]es and automatic updates), but the extensions themselves remain subject to [[vulnerability (computing)|vulnerabilities]] and access is often much greater than that of native [[Web application]]s. For security purposes, most RIAs run their client portions within a special isolated area of the client desktop called a sandbox. The sandbox limits visibility and access to the file-system and to the operating system on the client to the application server on the other side of the connection. This approach allows the client system to handle local activities, reformatting and so forth, thereby lowering the amount and frequency of client-server traffic, especially versus client-server implementations built around so-called thin clients.<ref>[http://www.isecpartners.com/files/RIA_World_BH_2008.pdf Living in the RIA World: Blurring the Line Between Web and Desktop Security, 2008]</ref>

==See also==
* [[HTML5]]
* [[List of rich web application frameworks]]
* [[Platform-independent GUI library|PIGUI]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria/ Accessible rich Internet applications (WAI-ARIA) 1.0] – W3C Candidate Recommendation 18 January 2011

{{Rich web applications}}
{{Web interfaces}}
{{Web browsers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rich Internet Application}}
[[Category:Mobile software]]
[[Category:Rich Internet Applications]]
[[Category:Software architecture]]
[[Category:Web 2.0]]