Is the mythical Longhorn going to make its eagerly awaited appearance in Windows 8? And how does HTML5 fit into the picture for Microsoft .NET developers?
There have been a lot of rumors lately surrounding the next version of Windows and the future of app development, and Microsoft hasn’t helped matters by seemingly dismissing .NET developers and telling them, JavaScript and HTML5 are the solution to your problems, and the future of the Windows platform.
The new paradigm is that Windows 8 is a move away from the traditional Microsoft operating system, and will include a new .NET runtime along with a COM-derived C++ runtime that is called WinRT. That combined with a native UI library that’s built on top of Direct2D will provide developers with an OS that is very different than grandpa’s Windows. The shift apparently isn’t so much to JavaScript and HTML5, but rather to DirectGUI, C++ and other technologies that will work like COM.