World Web has always been the fast-paced environment. As far back a couple of years ago, Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight were the...
World Web has always been the fast-paced environment. As far back a couple of years ago, Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight were the standard tools for creating and displaying the video and animation. Today, these and many other technologies reach back, as necessity weakens to use any additional plug-ins for viewing of videos, listening to music and even for communication via the Internet. Following are some of the Top Eight Internet of Things Technologies (IoT) which really can make a difference in upcoming years.
What changes can we await in the Web in the near future? What new Internet technologies are under development or available for your browser? Finally, what are the perspectives of browsers themselves in a period of applications’ heyday?
1. HTTP2 and SPDY
All modern web addresses start with a combination of “HTTP: //” – despite the fact that you do not have to type it in the browser. Letters “HTTP” means “HyperText Transfer Protocol”, which adduces technology of transfer of web pages’ data from the remote server to the client computer. Tim Berners-Lee created HTTP-protocol in March 1991, and since then it has not changed much. By the way, Sir Berners-Lee then repeatedly admitted that double slash in the beginning of URL appeared by mistake and absolutely does not mean anything.
Meanwhile, HTTP-protocol has many unnecessary anachronisms in its basis, which only slow down web page’s time of loading in the browser. Therefore, specialists work for its replacement on the agreeable to modern standards option HTTP2.
Four years ago, Google began to develop a new version of HTTP, which got the name SPDY (pronounces as “speedy”). The main task of SPDY’s implementation was in an acceleration of pages’ loading. A client computer sends dozens of different queries to the web server when it uses HTTP for loading one page. SPDY allows speeding up this process thanks to the technology of multiplexing, when multiple signals are reduced to one, and thanks to the system of the most important requests’ prioritizing. According to the last information of Google, SPDY technology allows speeding up the download of the typical page Google News to about 45 percent. It is available today for the all latest versions of popular browsers – beginning from Chrome and Firefox and ending with Internet Explorer in Windows 8 and 8.1.
However, unfortunately, a small number of sites on the Internet has the support of SPDY technology. Checking whether a particular resource has a support of SPDY, you can simply enter URL of the proper site on the page of SPDYCHECK. Such popular sites, as Facebook, Twitter and WordPress have the support of this program. Most likely, SPDY will become the part of the new standard HTTP2, which is still under development. Implementation of such standards is able to continue for ages, but after that many sites will load on the users’ terminals almost instantly.
2. WebRTC
You will no longer need neither Skype nor any other VoIP-service for the installment of vocal or visual communication via the Internet. WebRTC technology allows organizing video chat between any users of social networks, such as Facebook, straight from the pages of this network. The technical basis of WebRTC is API in JavaScript, which is integrable directly into the browser. WebRTC also uses many inventions in the sphere of sound and video engines, including noise and echo clipping and compression of the signal for the transmission through the flow channels.
Thanks to WebRTŠ” one might forget about the ridiculous delays at the time of launching of multi-user video conferences, especially if one of the users have not downloaded and installed the necessary software. Everything required for voice and video calls will be built into the browser. Video consultations of potential customers will become usual in online stores. Only Amazon can boast such service today. One need press the button in the readers of Kindle of the latest generation in order to start a video chat with technical support.
In addition, the introduction of WebRTC is able to raise on a new level interactivity of websites. If a user gives access the site to his web camera, different services will be able to see their visitors. This will allow, for example, changing the font size automatically, if the user bows too close to the monitor. If one lowers eyes to the bottom of the screen, this will allow browsing the page. A similar function, which traces the movement of eyes, is already present in some Samsung smartphones. API of WebRTC is already built into the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, and Opera. One need wait for the mobile version in order to take full advantage of smartphones and tablets.
3. IFTTT
The best example of properly organized “Internet of things” is network service ifttt.com, which relates to the category of some kind of mash-up services. Mashup services are web services, which unite data from different sources into the one tool. Abbreviation IFTTT stands for as “If this, then that”. This service functions in such way that it automatizes performance of goal operating sequence. For instance, you can set automatic preservation of all photos in Facebook, which are marked by your tag, in the cloud of Dropbox or program daily uploading of text messages to you about the weather forecast in the mornings at 7.00.
We can get rather a curious system if unite functionality of IFTTT with opportunities of hardware devices. One may buy various devices, which are compatible with IFTTT. For example, company Belkin releases data units of movement and tumblers WeMo with the help of which one may “bring together” even the most unadvanced equipment on the Internet. The simplest example is security system: actuation of data unit’s movement can lead to the sending of SMS or E-mail message to you or even switching off your stereo system at full blast. Recently IFTTT has reached an agreement with American shop of “Smart Things”, which, among other matters, trades in tumblers and keystones controlled via the Internet. In use of such devices, you will manage to switch on the light in the house just sending the text message or open entrance door to the guests with the help of tweet.
In future, “Internet of things” will manage to provide completely automatic service of the entirely different level. For example, your smartphone, determining the coordinates of GPS that you are some kilometers off the house, can give a signal to your domestic climatic system in order to turn on heating or chill the air.
4. SRCSET
Emerging of screens with high resolution, such as Retina on iPad and MacBook has resulted in the appearance of an unexpected problem: Many of images on websites look on them blurred and grainy since they were developed and optimized for common displays. Traditionally, photos of limited resolution and quality are used on the web pages: first because of low connection speeds and then because of small resolution of screens.
New attribute “srcset”, which is included in expansions of standard HTML5, allows displaying images of different quality depending on client’s resolution of the screen. Modifiers of multiplicity are supported: for example – 2x (pixel density is boosted twice), 3x (triple).
Attribute “srcset” is supported in all browsers, which are based on the engine WebKit, and in Apple Safari. Nevertheless, it has not become recognized standard.
5. Native Client
Until now, essential difference persists in performance and capabilities of web-applications, available through the browser (for example, Google Docs) and “full-fledged” desktop applications, established and launched on the PC (for instance, Microsoft Word). Technology Google Native Client will allow overcoming this difference and launch the applications written for desktops, directly inside the browser.
Thanks to Native Client, various applications are written in languages C and C++, such as Microsoft Word or Adobe Photoshop, can be installed on the website. In addition, one may get access to them through the simple browser.
Google has released Portable Native Client recently, which allows working with applications on any device, no matter of the type of processor.
6. HTML5
HTML5 is a new version of web pages’ language of the layout. It has already been used quite widely on the Internet, despite the fact that it does not have an official standing. The main advantage of HTML5 and principal difference from previous versions is a description of multimedia content through the means of a code. New tags “video”, “audio”, “canvas” are used for the insert of such elements in HTML5. Necessity is absent in any additional plug-ins like Adobe Flash.
7. Chrome Canary Web Browser
Google has at once a few channels for beta-testers, which allow downloading and installing preliminary versions of browser Chrome on various stages of development. The most interesting version is Canary updated every day and containing the latest innovations. Unlike other beta-versions of Chrome, installed over your version, Canary can be installed separately and play for a long time, one may return to usual stable version.
8. Firefox Auralis and Aurora Web Browsers
Those, who wish can choose one of the two experimental versions of browser Firefox. Beta-version of standard “desktop” browser differs new minimalistic design of Auralis, where displayed controls are minimized and attention of user focused on the content of pages.
Browser Firefox Aurora is oriented on the computers with touch screens. If the browser is installed on the computer under the control of Windows 8/8.1 and chosen as the main one, then big buttons will appear on each side of the window for the convenient break on the previous page, the opening of the new tab and some other specific functions.
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