Microsoft releases Silverlight 1.0, pledges Linux support

Operating system conjurer Microsoft has today officially delivered the first release of Silverlight, its answer to Flash, AJAX and friends.

Silverlight is a browser plugin designed to help companies produce rich, web-based applications and user experiences. Adobe and Sun have similar packages - Flex and JavaFX - and anyone who is handy with JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Java, Flash and SQL* can achieve many of the same things that these packages provide, at the expense of time.

When first announced and later previewed, criticism arose around lack of support for operating systems other than Windows and OS X.

But then came word of Moonlight. It was to be made by the creators of Mono - the open source implementation of the .net development framework - designed to bring Silverlight to Linux and co. Novell leads the Mono project.

Today's announcement from Microsoft states not only that some 35 companies have joined the "Silverlight Partnership Initiative" at launch - all using the technology to create rich web experiences for users (lucky us) - but also that Microsoft's going to "work with Novell" on bringing Silverlight to Linux.

And it'll be doing so through Moonlight. There's still a way to go on the project,but Microsoft's helping hand might speed up the process.

If Microsoft's to really challange the Flash-based and Java-based competition, which already work on Linux (most of the time), then it must prove itself serious about helping deliver Silverlight to penguin-kind.

Anyway, what about these launch parters? Here's a snip from MS's press release:

"More than 35 companies have already signed up to support Silverlight and take advantage of a broad range of marketing and technical benefits enabling them to be more successful."

The list of supporters has a few familiar names, but it's more about who these companies work with/for than the companies themselves:

"'Entertainment Tonight,' the No. 1 entertainment newsmagazine, worked with interactive design agencies REZN8 and IdentityMine Inc. to build a complete minisite dedicated to Emmy Award coverage linked from ETOnline.com and TheInsiderOnline.com. This is the first phase in ET's long-term commitment to build Silverlight-powered minisites to cover high-profile entertainment events."

With browser wars 2.0 fizzling out somewhat, it looks like the next 2.0 battle is to be fought over Silverlight, Flex and JavaFX.

Let the games begin. Wake us when it's over.

* Anybody crazy enough to be savvy with all of these things is, most likely, inhuman, or at the very least a nerd of the highest order... or Larry Wall