User talk:Nrcjersey

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[edit] Browser application

Hello! I saw the article you recently created under the title browser application, and after a bit of a search I found Wikipedia already has a lengthy article on the subject at "web application". As far as I can see both articles are about the same topic, and "web application" already has redirects at "browser-based" and "browser-based software", so I tagged your article with a proposed merge tag (rather than just railroading your article into another redirect). I wondered if I could get your opinion on which title is more appropriate though - in my opinion, "browser" or "browser-based" should be in there somewhere, because as the article at "web application" states such applications need not be provided over the WWW, and could be deployed on an intranet. Your thoughts? Maybe start a discussion on Talk:Web application? ~Matticus TC 14:50, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

Argg... I thought I searched for "Web Application" before starting that article, sorry for the duplication, I must have had a misspelling in my search. The two could be merged, but as I've watched the technology evolve, I think that Google Gears marks a new subset of applications wholly different from "Web Applications" where the internet connectivity is no longer a requirement to use the software on one's local computer. Today, the world still looks at any browser-based application as just another web application, but I don't beleive that's accurate anymore. What is the best "Wiki" way to deal with this? Nrcjersey 15:05, 12 October 2007 (UTC)
I'm copying this thread to the discussion page for open input. Nrcjersey 15:10, 12 October 2007 (UTC)
My point exactly - browser-based software does seem to be developing in a direction that means the term "web application" is a bit of a misnomer, or at least not sufficient to describe them in toto. I know, I deal with a number of intranet-based applications at my work that are available on an intranet, run through a browser, plug into a PostgreSQL or MySQL-based back end, use HTML and Flash or Java-based middle layers, but could not really be described as "Web" applications, strictly speaking. I'm not all that familiar with Google Gears so I can't comment on whether it does constitute a new direction for browser-based apps or merely an evolution, but one should be wary of crystal ballery here. Anyway, perhaps merge the articles for now, then propose a name change at WP:RM? ~Matticus TC 16:49, 12 October 2007 (UTC)