All,
Two EU-funded projects have implemented the draft W3C Widgets
specifications, both the packaging and API parts.
What is notable from these projects have been the adaptations used to
enable widgets conforming to the draft to be used in a web environment
rather than in a dedicated platform such as a browser, OS or device
"widget layer". We've documented and discussed the extensions and
implementation approaches here:
http://groups.google.com/group/talk-about-widgets/web/implementating-the-w3c-widget-specification
In brief, the Palette project has added W3C widgets functionality
through developing the engine as part of an open-source portal web
application, whereas the TenCompetence project developed a standalone
open-source engine for adding widgets to multiple web applications,
rather similar in approach to the Apache Shindig project for
implementing Google OpenSocial.
In addition, both projects wanted to add additional functionality to
the API; this has included state coupling and shared states to enable
richer interaction between (a) widgets in the same user context and
(b) instances of the same widget from different users (i.e.
collaborative applications such as chat and voting).
Note that though both were funded by the EC IST programme, Palette and
TenCompetence had not been collaborating prior to a recent event where
members of both were asked to provide papers, when we discovered we
had undertaken parallel efforts at solving the same problems with the
same specifications! Hopefully this gives others an opportunity to
learn from our different approaches.
Both projects are focussed on networked learning solutions and
research, for which Widgets provided an elegant solution to a number
of issues in reaching learners and co-ordinating access to
functionality. For more background on the projects themselves, see:
http://www.tencompetence.org
http://palette.ercim.org/
Cheers,
Scott
/-/-/-/-/-/
Scott Wilson
Assistant Director, JISC CETIS
University of Bolton
scott.bradley.wil...@gmail.com
http://www.cetis.ac.uk/members/scott
