Mozilla Prism Focuses On Bringing Web Apps Closer To Desktop

Slowly, but surely, people seem to be performing more and more tasks through the use of online web applications rather than with traditional desktop software.

For this reason, Mozilla Labs announced yesterday that it will be launching new experiments that aim to seal the gap between the desktop and web apps" as the line between traditional desktop and new web applications continues to blur."

The first application to surface from these experiments is Prism, formerly known as WebRunner, which is designed to help users take web applications out of their web browser and into a separate window that runs directly from their desktop or Start menu.

Prism is not a new platform, but rather "the web platform integrated into the desktop experience," as the Mozilla team has been sure to point out. "Web developers don’t have to target it separately, because any application that can run in a modern standards-compliant web browser can run in Prism. Prism is built on Firefox, so it supports rich internet technologies like HTML, JavaScript, CSS, and <canvas> and runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux."

Imagine being able to click on a Facebook or MySpace icon from your desktop then having a custom window launch just for you to view your profile, and you begin to get an understanding of the possibilities of Prism. "If you happen to be away from your computer, you can access these same applications from any Web browser," as Alex Faaborg notes. "And if you ever decide to switch platforms, all of the applications you run with Prism can seamlessly switch with you." It is almost like a no-frills version of Firefox with no browser interface features.

"Except for the minor convenience of running oft-used web apps in their own dedicated window and making them accessible via a desktop icon, Prism isn't really all that exciting in its current form," writes Josh Catone, mentioning the currently limited functionality of Prism. "It doesn't offer much of a benefit over bookmarks and your current browser window. However, the implications for the future are big."

Just what can we expect in the future from Prism? The Mozilla team has suggested that it should eventually provide support for offline data storage and access to 3D graphics hardware. Additionally, the crew has hinted at integration with Firefox, to give users a single button to click when they wish to create a new Prism desktop app.

For anyone who would like to try out an early version of Prism, a prototype build for Windows (Mac and Linux to come soon) is already available from Mozilla Labs, as well as the source code.

Prism looks to be very promising and could have the potential to decrease use of web browsers around the world, if it ends up becoming anywhere near as popular as Mozilla's own Firefox browser. But, that is still down the road, and Mozilla has a lot of developing to do before Prism is ready for a public release.

What do you think of Prism?