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Wow! This is mesmerizing. These posts on HTML5 stuff that pop-up on HN from time to time hint on what is to come on the web in the near term. I think HTML5 is

Wow! This is mesmerizing. These posts on HTML5 stuff that pop-up on HN from time to time hint on what is to come on the web in the near term. I think HTML5 is a huge Tsunami gathering energy and steam out there! It will and should beat all these "I-am-the-best" closed systems (already does in some areas) sometime soon, and be on the top. System agnostic, immersive, inclusive, what not. Love it.

connerbryan 13y ago
Definitely. It's amazing to watch a technology accelerate this quickly.
- CmonDev 13y ago
  Yeah, scripting an OpenGL game engine. First time ever.
tbolse 13y ago
100% agreed.
_random_ 13y ago
The bad thing is that there will be no technology competition. Just HTML and JS for everything? Boring...
- connerbryan 13y ago
  "Just C and C++ for everything? Boring..." I seriously doubt that the world will stagnate at HTML and JS. Thing will evolve! Though judging by adoption and advancements from W3C, it might be thousands of years ;).
- bdicasa 13y ago
  JavaScript is no longer the only language. I wouldn't be surprised if JavaScript is used at all for large projects in the future. With things like Dart, TypeScript, CoffeeScript, and asm.js JavaScript is becoming more of a compile target.
  - hcarvalhoalves 13y ago
    > I wouldn't be surprised if JavaScript is used at all for large projects in the future. This is actually a scary prospect, considering how consistent JS is as a language, let alone as a bytecode replacement.
  - grey-area 13y ago
    All it would take to replace JS would be for a large vendor maker (or ideally 2) to get behind a common byte code, and support it in parallel with JS. Suddenly a whole world of languages would open up for web use. I expect that to happen sooner rather than later, it is not an impossible problem, and it is far preferable to trying to use JS as a compile target.
slacka 13y ago
We may be seeing the same HTML5 demos on HN, but we're living in two different universes. In my world, I always open up these demos in a browser that's incompatible. If I do manage to get them working, my reaction is always like wow, I saw better native demos 10 years ago, and those just worked. Let's be honest. JavaScript, DOM, and CSS are terrible technologies to base any gaming system off of. As a gamer, performance is critical and stuttering ubiquitous in HTML5 games is unacceptable. For a gamer who disables mouse acceleration, had a CRT until low latency gaming LCDs were available, and tracks his Star Craft APM, what does HTML 5 buy me other than performance issues?
- monsterix 13y ago
  > I saw better native demos 10 years ago, and those just worked. Agreed. But you're missing the point. In those 10 years those of us who played in the native universe will not be the target market any more. Just like we listeners of Pink Floyd and Metallica aren't the target buyers of Justin Biebers and Lady Gagas of the day. The latter are as successful, immersive and relevant to those who matter. > JavaScript, DOM, and CSS are terrible technologies to base any gaming system off of. Now this is an opinion based on the current_level_of_performance (which I agree is not at the expected level.). But it's not a great way to judge what the future could hold. It's definitely a bet, like you said let's be honest with this.
  - Recoil42 13y ago
    >Now this is an opinion based on the current_level_of_performance (which I agree is not at the expected level.). But it's not a great way to judge what the future could hold. Native will always fundamentally beat non-native, that's a plain fact.
    - monsterix 13y ago
      > Native will always fundamentally beat non-native, that's a plain fact. I believe so, yes. Assuming there will be 9 billion web users sometime into the future, non-native will be enough for most of the stuff though.
roarroar 13y ago
>System agnostic, immersive, inclusive, what not. Love it. Yay! Let's cheerlead the democritisation (read: degeneration) of computer programming! The "open", democratic people got everything wrong, which is why the browser has such a laughable hodge podge of features. Hooray for people who took web programming instead of OS design at college. WOOO!
- biomecha 13y ago
  > Let's cheerlead the democritisation I think you meant democratisation, or was there some subtle reference to a [famous greek philosopher](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demokritos http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demokritos)?
theboywho 13y ago
I think the web or HTML5 is the most closed platform ever. Let me explain. You want to program for the web? Javascript. You want to do 3D? we have you covered, you can only use webgl. Don't like it? Sorry but we need to remain open! want audio? We have an API for that, why would you want to use something else? use Audio API, it's open. can you imagine if linux, or microsoft windows or OS X only understood one programming language? Or if DirectX were the only 3D thing you can use? or if to use audio, you had no choice but to use one library? The web is just that, and no, being available on all the platforms does not make it an open platform. It's one big closed transparent prison available everywhere. Once you go in, you are stuck with the onboard equipment.
- Jyaif 13y ago
  Your comment is similar to saying "to program on windows, you have to write assembly". You can write for the web in Java, C, C++, and a bunch of other languages that all compile to JS.

connerbryan 13y ago

Definitely. It's amazing to watch a technology accelerate this quickly.

CmonDev 13y ago
Yeah, scripting an OpenGL game engine. First time ever.

tbolse 13y ago

100% agreed.

_random_ 13y ago

The bad thing is that there will be no technology competition. Just HTML and JS for everything? Boring...

connerbryan 13y ago
"Just C and C++ for everything? Boring..." I seriously doubt that the world will stagnate at HTML and JS. Thing will evolve! Though judging by adoption and advancements from W3C, it might be thousands of years ;).
bdicasa 13y ago
JavaScript is no longer the only language. I wouldn't be surprised if JavaScript is used at all for large projects in the future. With things like Dart, TypeScript, CoffeeScript, and asm.js JavaScript is becoming more of a compile target.
- hcarvalhoalves 13y ago
  > I wouldn't be surprised if JavaScript is used at all for large projects in the future. This is actually a scary prospect, considering how consistent JS is as a language, let alone as a bytecode replacement.
- grey-area 13y ago
  All it would take to replace JS would be for a large vendor maker (or ideally 2) to get behind a common byte code, and support it in parallel with JS. Suddenly a whole world of languages would open up for web use. I expect that to happen sooner rather than later, it is not an impossible problem, and it is far preferable to trying to use JS as a compile target.

slacka 13y ago

We may be seeing the same HTML5 demos on HN, but we're living in two different universes. In my world, I always open up these demos in a browser that's incompatible. If I do manage to get them working, my reaction is always like wow, I saw better native demos 10 years ago, and those just worked. Let's be honest. JavaScript, DOM, and CSS are terrible technologies to base any gaming system off of. As a gamer, performance is critical and stuttering ubiquitous in HTML5 games is unacceptable. For a gamer who disables mouse acceleration, had a CRT until low latency gaming LCDs were available, and tracks his Star Craft APM, what does HTML 5 buy me other than performance issues?

monsterix 13y ago
> I saw better native demos 10 years ago, and those just worked. Agreed. But you're missing the point. In those 10 years those of us who played in the native universe will not be the target market any more. Just like we listeners of Pink Floyd and Metallica aren't the target buyers of Justin Biebers and Lady Gagas of the day. The latter are as successful, immersive and relevant to those who matter. > JavaScript, DOM, and CSS are terrible technologies to base any gaming system off of. Now this is an opinion based on the current_level_of_performance (which I agree is not at the expected level.). But it's not a great way to judge what the future could hold. It's definitely a bet, like you said let's be honest with this.
- Recoil42 13y ago
  >Now this is an opinion based on the current_level_of_performance (which I agree is not at the expected level.). But it's not a great way to judge what the future could hold. Native will always fundamentally beat non-native, that's a plain fact.
  - monsterix 13y ago
    > Native will always fundamentally beat non-native, that's a plain fact. I believe so, yes. Assuming there will be 9 billion web users sometime into the future, non-native will be enough for most of the stuff though.

roarroar 13y ago

>System agnostic, immersive, inclusive, what not. Love it. Yay! Let's cheerlead the democritisation (read: degeneration) of computer programming! The "open", democratic people got everything wrong, which is why the browser has such a laughable hodge podge of features. Hooray for people who took web programming instead of OS design at college. WOOO!

biomecha 13y ago
> Let's cheerlead the democritisation I think you meant democratisation, or was there some subtle reference to a [famous greek philosopher](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demokritos http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demokritos)?

theboywho 13y ago

I think the web or HTML5 is the most closed platform ever. Let me explain. You want to program for the web? Javascript. You want to do 3D? we have you covered, you can only use webgl. Don't like it? Sorry but we need to remain open! want audio? We have an API for that, why would you want to use something else? use Audio API, it's open. can you imagine if linux, or microsoft windows or OS X only understood one programming language? Or if DirectX were the only 3D thing you can use? or if to use audio, you had no choice but to use one library? The web is just that, and no, being available on all the platforms does not make it an open platform. It's one big closed transparent prison available everywhere. Once you go in, you are stuck with the onboard equipment.

Jyaif 13y ago
Your comment is similar to saying "to program on windows, you have to write assembly". You can write for the web in Java, C, C++, and a bunch of other languages that all compile to JS.