There is a distinct line between web application and desktop applications. But over the last few years, this line is becoming thinner. Due to faster internet connection and technologies like ajax, web applications are becoming much faster and more responsive. And, if you have a local web server installed, a ‘web’ application can become desktop application.

I have a web server(Apache), and a database server(MySQL) running at all times on my local system. Since LAMP is my preferred platform of development, if I need a new software, I will create it on LAMP. A good example of this is Nexty. Over time, I have discovered that web application can be used as desktop applications. All you need is a web server, a database server and a browser.

There must be some changes to the current model to make this system work. These are a few I could think of…

• Web Server must run as the current user. That way, you can read/write to any file using PHP(or equivalent).
• The application must not be available over the network. Or, the web server must only accept connections from 127.0.0.1
• An installer for these kind of applications must be made.

Advantages

• Familiarity: People are already used to web applications - so it will be easy to switch.
• User Customizable: Users can change the appearance of the application(user stylesheets), and to a limited extent, the functionality(GreaseMonkey).
• Open Source: If the code is in PHP or Ruby on Rails, or anything similar, the code will be available for study or even modification.
• Cross Platform: The same program can be installed in Windows or Linux or whatever - as long as it has a Web server.

Disadvantages

• Imaginary: As of yet no such system exists.
• High Level: The system will not be able to do low level system operations.
• Limited: There will be some very serious limitation to the application unless the current systems are modified. For example, the browser cannot read or write to the filesystem.

I have been using some web applications as desktop applications for a while now - these include WordPress(for keeping notes), activeCollab(project management), Nexty(to do list), and Tiker(time tracker).

I made some more updates to nexty. Still not packaged - give me a little more time. In the meantime, try out the demo…

There is one really cool feature in this release - but it is for Linux Users only. I made a command line script that integrates with Nexty - you can add tasks directly from the console. It needs the curl command - so not available in windows.

But then again, who uses the terminal in windows?

Anyway this uses the concept I introduced in CLI Twitter. If you want to try it, login to Nexty and go to the settings page. If you are on a linux system, you will see a Download Nexty Shell Script section. Just follow the instructions there.

I uploaded the demo for the new beta version of Nexty today. The code is too ‘beta’ to be packaged and released - so I am just uploaded the demo. If the bugs are found and fixed soon, I will release the code into the wild. If you cannot wait for the code, it is available at the SVN repository.

Whats New…

A few new features are…

• Search
• Next Action
• Inbox Feature
• Code uses IFrame
• And more…

Please try out the demo and let me know if you spot any errors. That is the whole point of uploaded the demo.

Nexty 1.01.A Demo

As you may know, I publish a lot of code for others to use. Often I forget to specify a license for the code - and I get a few comment asking me what license it is under. So I have created a license page for both Bin-Co and OpenJS. I hate restricting use of my code - so I choose the most permissive one around - the BSD License.

I know that many people feel strongly about software license. I still get a lot of flank from my LUG because I prefer using BSD License over their favorite GPL.

GPL was not an option as most of my code are snippets that are meant to be used with other code. GPL will not allow my code to be used within proprietary projects. Another option is LGPL - but I still prefer BSD.

Basically, all scripts, codes and programs from any of my sites are in the BSD License. That means that you can do anything with the scripts - except claim that you wrote it. You can use, copy, sell, modify or whatever you want with it - but you cannot claim authorship.

Importance of Choosing a License

If you are planning to release your code publicly, it is very important that you say what license you are using. If you fail to specify a license, many people will not use your code. It was a big mistake waiting this long before putting up a license on my sites.

If you want help in deciding the license, these links should be of help…

• A list of the most popular licenses
• Simon Willison’s Licensing Issue - read the comments
• Pick a License, Any License
• QuirksMode Copyright - an example of a license page

More Links

• The WTFPL License
• The problem with BSD Style License according to Richard M. Stallman
• Copyright Explained - not about code licenses - but a must read if you are new to all this.

The next version of nexty is coming out very soon - and unlike the last version, Nexty 2 will require PHP 5.

The main reason behind this change is GoPHP5. Go PHP 5 is a movement to promote the use of PHP5 in hosting servers and for projects.

Another reason for this decision is that iFrame, the framework I used in Nexty, uses PHP 5.

If you are stuck with PHP 4, I cannot help it. You can still use the first version. But if you have a choice, PHP 4 is dead - move on.

More on GoPHP5

• The PHP Rift
• Drupal Joins ‘Go PHP 5′ Movement
• Leaving PHP4 behind…