Web applications
Ubiquity - anytime, anywhere
With the arrival of the information era, the accessibility of information is much more important. Applications, which used to be provided strictly as a desktop applications and it was necessary for their use to install them on the computer, are now being replaced with Internet applications.
The reason of their popularity is their ubiquity – you only need a web browser and connection to the Internet. No installation is required. A web browser is no longer standard software just on personal computers, but it is available for almost any mobile device. With mobile connection, you can work with this type of application anytime and almost everywhere.
Internet applications are knocking out their desktop counterparts, even in the case they offer less functions compared to their desktop competitors. The reason for this is meeting the „stay in sync“ concept. The users value the access to their data anytime and everywhere.
Accessibility, integration, centralization
Internet applications have many benefits, but their pivotal properties are
- instant accessibility of the information,
- the means of controlling them from anywhere in the World,
- the posibility of integrating them with another applications – either from other application into yours or from yours to the other,
- the data is stored on a server and can be secured and backed up more safely.
Comparison of the desktop and web platform as a client
| Criteria |
Web |
Desktop |
| Platform size |
personal computer, mobile device, PDA, tablet... |
personal computer (usually only one operating system) |
| Accessibility of application / information |
anywhere with internet connection |
only on the pc with installed software |
| Integration with other systems |
links, direct insertion of remote source, iframe |
only if there is public API |
| Manipulation of presented content |
easy to enlarge the font, read the white readerd, text search |
only if it is implemented |
| Offline mode |
have to implement support (local web server, gears) |
easy to use local database, files |
| Using special peripherals (USB, COM) |
have to implement support (local web server, plugin) |
easy access to USB, COM |