May 12, 1997
How the Web will change how we compute
By Bob O'Donnell
People have been talking about the notion of document-centered computing for a long
time. Ever since the early days of the Macintosh and its "radically" new
graphical user interface ("borrowed" from the researchers at Xerox Parc), up
through today's iterations of Windows 95 and OS/2 Warp, there have been claims made about
and small movements toward this goal of universal file access and viewing. Real-world,
wide-scale implementations of document-centered computing environments have not come to
fruition, however, despite some noble efforts, such as Apple's ill-fated OpenDoc
technology.
I believe the Internet and, more specifically, Web browsers may finally hold the key to
unlocking the document-centric computing universe. The reasons seem clear: The Internet
has quickly become a universal resource, and its enormous popularity has turned Web
browsers into ubiquitous tools. In addition, the diversity of information and file types
on the Internet has forced the creation of new tools for viewing documents of nearly every
conceivable variety. More importantly, virtually all of these tools plug into the existing
browser framework, in essence turning the browser into a universal file viewer.
As a result, despite an enormously heterogeneous network, computer and information
appliance users running a huge variety of operating systems on an equally varied range of
platforms can all access a vast array of different documents, regardless of the
applications available on their machines. Admittedly, a lot more work needs to be done in
easing the plug-in implementation process, but the extraordinary success of browser
plug-ins and Sun's Java language, which plays right into the notion of universal access,
is a testament to how quickly advances in this area have already come.
The last critical step in changing the paradigm of how we work with our computers from
an application-centered world to a document-centered one is starting to happen.
Web-centered desktops are already part of Microsoft's Internet Explorer 4.0 and will
eventually be part of Netscape's Communicator 4.0. Most of the focus on these new browsers
has been on how they bring the Internet and the Web to the desktop. To me, though, it's
the reverse of that equation, or bringing the desktop out to the Web, that is so
important.
By pushing the proprietary, application-centered world of the desktop onto the
universal, document-centered world of the Internet and Web browsers, we are fundamentally
changing how we interact with our PCs. When individuals can view their desktop files and
even file directories through the browser, all files, whether stored locally or not, can
be handled in the same way. That's a big jump toward document-centered computing. In fact,
in light of this, I bet we'll start seeing the designation "Web browser" being
replaced by "file browser" or simply "browser."
I also believe, as I've said
before, Microsoft has gained a strategic advantage over Netscape by implementing this
local file-viewing capability in its browser first.
Of course, not everyone believes in the value of document-centered computing. For
example, serious questions have been raised about the viability of a single, universal
application for viewing and editing radically different types of documents. To me, the
answer to that dilemma is clear: Today's applications will morph into editing applets that
will plug into the standard framework of the browser. That way, the appropriate interface
tools will be available for different types of documents and there will be plenty of
leeway for differentiating products made by different ISVs. The benefit is that all the
different pieces should be able to work together and concerns about file formats should
disappear.
Admittedly, some of these notions are a bit pie in the sky. But with the changes
happening in the industry and the Internet's growing influence, I'm starting to believe
that document-centered computing is a realistic goal.
©
Copyright 1997, by InfoWorld Publishing Corp., a
subsidiary of IDG Communications, Inc. Reprinted from InfoWorld,
155 Bovet Road, San Mateo, CA 94402. Further reproduction is prohibited.
