Silverlight & The Next Generation of Automotive Software

Replies to This ADM Discussion

Permalink Reply by Matt Watson on November 19, 2008 at 5:57pm

Good to see someone else out there on the "bleeding edge"

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Permalink Reply by Matt Watson on November 21, 2008 at 1:14pm

Hey George this might be useful for your developers.

http://www.codeplex.com/SilverlightValidator

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Permalink Reply by Randy Cole on November 19, 2008 at 5:44pm

I always like to play devils advocate - so let's have a go at it...

Having worked with Flash since it first came out, as well as hiring and managing many Flash developers and scripters for tons of Flash projects through the years, I would concur that Flash is well embedded into the designer/developer community. However, I think we need to take a long hard look at where I think this could be headed...

Imagine a tool like Silverlight, fueled and supported by a behemoth like Microsoft, becoming so embedded in the business world (online and otherwise) and becoming so user friendly (think 'hands-off') that hundreds of Silverlight modules could possibly put Flash developers out of business.

I use Flash but I still look for 'pre-scripted' Flash apps whenever possible, just to save time. The code is usually solid and I do not want to waste my time - I would rather sell cars than program. And there are plenty of Flash modules already available. These are easy to emulate in Silverlight. Now there's a new cottage industry...

And if we are talking data dashboards for Enterprise data when CEO's and GMs want to parse and play with their data via an EIS (Enterprise Information System) tool like Crystal Reports or others, those Flash tools/modules already exist as well. Again, Silverlight will be making headway in this arena as well.

So, like it or not (and I don't), I personally think the clear winner, over time, is going to be the data or content display 'shell' that is closest to the business world, which happens to be Microsoft's Silverlight.

The 800 pound gorilla in the room right now is Microsoft, They run many of the business office tools around the world, whether we like it or not. I know I am typing on one of them right now. Unfortunately, I don't think Adobe, and the world of designers and Flash developers are going to be able to match the market inroads that Microsoft already has within it's grasp.

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Permalink Reply by Matt Watson on November 19, 2008 at 6:12pm

The key is Silverlight is focused on a niche that Flash has never really penetrated, and this is dynamic data driven business applications. Flash has always been more for animations, static content, and attractive marketing uses.

You are correct that the Silverlight community will flood it with cool modules. We are getting ready to submit something to the open source community that we created because it will help others.

The most important piece to the Silverlight vs Flash decision from a development and management standpoint is this: Should I hire Microsoft Visual C# developers which can be applied to develop every type of software there is, or should I hire Flash/Flex developers which can't be applied to anything else. Even if you can program in Flash, you have to learn some other technologies to connect it to a database and create an enterprise services platform behind it. I might as well learn one common technology (.NET platform) that can do everything. They don't teach Flash to computer science majors in college... but they do learn about Microsoft .NET

Soon there will be graphic artists learning to use Expression Blend which is the competitor to Flash.

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Permalink Reply by Randy Cole on November 19, 2008 at 6:39pm

Matt - I am glad you put that response up. You covered some of the points I had deleted out of my previous posting because I thought it was getting too long. I did not want to bore anyone.

The analogy I was going to use was that of the people who built and re-built carburetors. When the fuel-injection model came along (i.e., a smarter, more efficient way of delivering the fuel, or data, for the sake of the analogy) many lost their jobs overnight.

The delivery model (for fuel = data) had changed and they were not paying attention - so they were out of business, or at the very least delegated to a second class as newer model cars no longer needed their services.

I also appreciate the fact that Microsoft has gone through a significant paradigm shift in how they create and handle data. Whether we like it or not, the new "Ribbon" interface they introduced with Office 2007 and Vista, was a great way to introduce us to the world of fluid data and the xml world. An MS Word page is no longer 'baked' into the format we are used to - it remains in a fluid state of 'data' until we tell it to print or display as a page.

Having created kiosks for in-store inventory display, I can absolutely see how Silverlight, again, as the interface to the data, is going to be more flexible to work with than Flash. Anyone who has followed and used Flash through the years, has seen how it has gotten much more flexible than it used to be. But in the same light, anyone who has worked with large data bases (and I have), can readily see the strengths that Silverlight is bringing to the table.

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Permalink Reply by Ralph Paglia on November 21, 2008 at 9:34pm

Let me see you SilverLight THIS piece of Flash... Reputation management be damned!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

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Permalink Reply by Randy Cole on November 24, 2008 at 10:44am

Awe, Ralph, you are just showing off those fantastic dancing legs again. Everyone knows that car guys dance the best, especially if they can sell a car or two in this current economy.

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