There was an interesting blog on the Bing Community that suggests interesting directions for web applications at Microsoft.
First of all, the Bing 3D Map ActiveX control, which used to be known as Virtual Earth and which derived from GeoTango, has been deprecated.
Secondly, the Birds Eye application, which provides oblique imagery from Pictometry, is being extended to include functionality that used to be in Virtual Earth including 3D urban landscapes and terrains. The new Birds Eye was previewed with a Silverlight client last year.
Thirdly, it is getting increasingly difficult to see Silverlight as anything but an interim strategy that will be ultimately replaced by HTML5, at least on the desktop. It is interesting that "very soon" the new Birds Eye will not require Silverlight or any other plugin. As you would expect with a large organization like Microsoft, there are conflicting emanations wrt the future of Silverlight. However, there appears to be a consistent message about Microsoft's committment to HTML5.
Thanks for this Geoff. That's good news for open web standards!
Posted by: Raj | November 15, 2010 at 11:38 AM