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Q5 What Are the Differences Between Native and Web Applications? 137

organization will need to support and maintain three separate versions of the same application. It
will also have to staff and manage three different development teams, with three different skill sets.
As a general rule, the cost of native applications is high. Many organizations reduce that
cost by outsourcing development to India and other countries (see the introduction to Chapter
11), but native applications are still expensive relative to Web applications. The standard way to
distribute native applications is via a company store, such as iTunes, owned by Apple. An excel-
lent example of a native application is Vanguard’s iPad application. It is easy to use, has complex
functionality, and is highly secure, as you would expect. Companies such as Vanguard must and
can afford to pay for exceedingly high-quality applications.
Developing Web Applications

The third column in Figure 4-17 summarizes Web application characteristics. Such applications
run inside a browser such as Firefox, Chrome, Opera, or Internet Explorer (IE). The browser
handles the idiosyncrasies of the operating system and underlying hardware. In theory, an orga-
nization should be able to develop a single application and have it run flawlessly on all browsers
on all devices. Unfortunately, there are some differences in the way that browsers implement
the Web code. The announcement in Figure 4-18 exhibits the frustration of Gethu Games’ de-
velopers when trying to make their Web application SpiroCanvas run on Internet Explorer 9
(www.GethuGames.in/SpiroCanvas/). 26
As shown in the first row of Figure 4-17, Web development languages are html5, css3, and
Javascript. html5 is the latest version of html, which you will learn about in Chapter 6. The
advantages of this version are support for graphics, animation, 2D animations, and other so-
phisticated user experiences. css3 is used with html5 to specify the appearance of content coded
in html. JavaScript is a scripting programming language that is much easier to learn than native-
client languages. It is used to provide the underlying logic of the application.
Web applications can be written by professional programmers, and, indeed, most are. However,
it is possible for technically oriented Web developers and business professionals to develop them as
well. The entry-level technical skill required is low, and simple applications are relatively easy to
develop. Sophisticated user experiences, like that in SpiroCanvas, are difficult. Web application de-
velopers may have degrees in computer science, information systems, or graphics design.
The user experience provided by a Web application varies considerably. Some are simply
fancy Web-based brochures (www.wildrhodyseafood.com); others are quite sophisticated, such
as SpiroCanvas in Figure 4-19 (www.gethugames.in/) or, even more impressive, www.biodigital-
human.com in Figure 4-20 (runs in Opera; may not work in other browsers).

Figure 4-18
One Consequence of Browser
Differences for Web
Applications
Source: www.gethugames.in/
spirocanvas. Reprinted by permission.

26 This sad saga continues beyond IE 9. As of May 2013, IE 10, the latest version of IE, will not support JavaScript
for touch on the Microsoft Surface. The same JavaScript on Firefox runs just fine.