Basic Web Applications

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Flock is the newest browser for people who are inclined with features but declines plug-ins and extensions. There’s very little you can do in the product that you can not do through extension layering in the Mozilla Firefox installation. The Flock browser comes with features all preconfigured and integrated into the user’s experience in browsing. Flock got the existing
Mozilla engine with its latest release, Flock 2.0. It is the same with the Mozilla Firefox 3 browser but with additional feature in media and social integration. You can get the latest release of this wonderful software in Download.com.

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There’s a new add-on readily available for the Firefox browser which improves your browser aesthetic as well as performance. Download Statusbar, lets you view and manage downloads from a tidy status bar, without the download window getting in the way of your web browsing. How cool can that be. Its compact size doesn’t necessarily mean it has few things to offer. Download Statusbar packs in more useful features than the standard download window. The fully customizable interface auto-hides when not in use, allowing full control without interruption. Other features of this wonderful add-on is it pauses and resumes download in a single click. It runs a completed file with a double click and it gives the option to start your installed virus scanner when a download is completed.

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Better Search: An additional room for Firefox which improves Google (all international flavours, too), MSN Search, Yahoo Search, A9, Answers.com, AllTheWeb, Dogpile.com, del.icio.us and Simpy.com bookmarks by adding previews (thumbnails) and Amazon product images and info (type, price, rating).

Torrent Finder: Torrent Finder Toolbar is a torrent search toolbar for Firefox, which allows users to search over 170 top torrent sites and trackers from their Firefox browser.

Foxy Tunes: FoxyTunes lets you manage almost any media player and find lyrics, covers, videos, bios and much more with a click right from your browser.

Firefox companion for Kodak EasyShare Gallery: Upload photos directly to your Kodak EasyShare Gallery, all within your browser.

Video Downloader: Download videos from Youtube, Google, Metacafe, iFilm, Dailymotion, Pornotube… and other 60+ video sites.

Adblock Plus: Ever been annoyed by all those ads and banners on the internet that often take longer to download than everything else on the page? Install Adblock Plus now and get rid of them.

No Script: Winner of the “2006 PC World World Class Award”, this tool provides extra protection to your Firefox.

Bug Me Not: Bypass compulsory web registration via Firefox’s right-click context menu.

Ruby on Rails was created to bring back the fun in developing web applications. Ruby is simply a powerful, object oriented programming language that provides readable and intuitive code. Rails handles the database interaction of the web development process. It also takes care of the client-side integration which allows users to work on creative and cool application features. According to statistics in 2006, among the 5000 web developers that were interviewed, 24% of them showed interest in learning more programming ideas using Ruby. This is by far the highest percentage. Ruby on Rails enables users to create and develop powerful web applications faster with less code as compared to other programming tools.

Creating web applications is as complicated as writing a thesis paper or a dissertation. It does not only require quite a tedious amount of effort to perfect the function of the program but also demands one constant thing from the user: internet connection.

Whenever a program is being written, it takes several factors in consideration but the most important of them is the user-interface. It is imperative that the application’s interface is easy to understand, lest it will not be used as it was intended to be so.

Using a atypical office document created raises an issue on standards compliance, touching the evasive issue of file sharing and collaboration. What must be noticed is that these browser applications are used by accessing the internet through the remote servers. It is threatening however, for the document, if the connection is suddenly lost or interrupted. Chances are, the document being encoded online will be lost and worse, irretrievable.

This kind of disadvantage poses a threat to the existence of the web applications, hence, companies such as Google have made preliminary solutions to this problem. However, for now, only prototypes have been developed to repress the threat raised by this problem. Just like so, Google has created Google Gears—a beta platform that aims to improve the usability of web applications.

The possibility of having web applications would not be conceivable if not for the frameworks supporting it. Web application frameworks are software structures intended to support the development of the interface—its dynamism, content, and over-all function. Many of these frameworks are used as databases for the codes used for programming, and also for organizing the templates for these applications.

There are two types of web application frameworks: the client-side (that which can be modified by the end users) and the server-side (or those that serve as the backbone of the application).

Below are some examples of web application frameworks according to type:

1. Client-side
a. Action-script
b. Java-script
2. Server-side
a. ASP
b. ColdFusion
c. Groovy
d. Java
e. Javascript
f. PHP
g. Visual FoxPro
h. Ruby
i. Scala
j. Python

Users need not to fully understand all of these frameworks but should at least be familiar of their nature and functions. Doing so would augment an easier use of the different web applications.

Further developments in electronics provide endless arrival of new chips and computer pieces. This eventually leads to new programs and applications, however, other computer components such as the memory space could not keep up to par with the acceleration of these developments.

That is why basic web application languages created the virtual hard drive, accessible through the internet. Here, websites are scattered all over the network, featuring online storage using a simple ‘browse-upload’ interface. Unlike discs and USBs, the files uploaded are virtually accessible anytime, anywhere. What any user would need is just an internet connection.

This kind of web application eases the problems of users with disk space. The need to defrag their hard drives would not be as frequent, and the safety of their files is more or less, physically secured.

No matter how useful, fun, and user friendly web applications may be, there are still complications that are potentially hazardous to these web applications.

Web security risks include unguaranteed information transfer from one server to the other. This includes submitting forms or even the simplest logging in to a larger server.

Solutions to these problems are given by WASS, or the Web Application Security Scanner. This is a software application and what it basically does is it “interacts” with the web application and from their gauging potential loopholes or weakness of the web application.

The overall advantage of this kind of scanner is that it would strengthen the suitability of business websites and other web pages that rely much of its online existence to large servers.

Web applications are not just used for rekindling lost relationships, making works easier, and helping to cultivate creativity, but it is also an opportunity to start a career.

Budding and aspiring writers go lengths just to have their works read by editors or publishing company owners and more often than not, they get a ‘no thanks’ and have no idea why their works are rejected.

Now, with the recent developments in software application programming, these budding writers (and maybe even the established ones) can use different web applications in order to post their work and receive comments from other writers as well. What’s more, not only would they be able to post their works, but they would also get paid whenever their material is read.

Looking for such applications and websites is easy specially when powerful search engines are used. These windows of opportunity would further be open as other developments for the web applications’ interface happens… and this is most likely to be sooner than later.

Computer users need not to spend another bulk of their money in order to acquire the latest updates for their programs and applications.

Application software engineers and their companies have figured out a way of cutting back their costs of reproducing millions of discs containing an improved edition of their existing programs. Now, through the use of web applications and interactive interfaces, these companies could now detect current versions of the programs installed in the computer and offer a real-time update of the versions. An advantage of having this kind of business is reducing the hassle to the computer owners to install the program to their hard drive all over again.

Companies engaging in this type of business and are using this kind of strategy are often times referred to as application service providers (ASPs) and by the looks of it, the attention they are receiving are not going thin anytime soon.