2010 has been, and will continue to be,  a great year for Microsoft.   With their release of Visual Studio 2010, .NET Framework 4, and Silverlight 4 all  with in the first half of the year, Microsoft is giving developers a unified set of tools to create applications for the desktop, the web, and even the upcoming Windows 7 Phone.

The implications for this are huge, and the success of the Windows 7 Phone will hinge on Microsoft’s development communities ability to create applications in numbers large enough to compete with the already huge Apple and Android application stores. By giving developers the same set of tools to create Windows 7 phone applications, that they have been using for years to create desktop and web applications, Microsoft is ensuring a smooth transition for developers, and a new community of mobile developers will no doubt arise.

Should Silverlight be nervous with HTML 5 features being adopted by some browsers now?    While  there are some great new features that will come with HTML 5 – css3, scalable vector graphics, h.264 video, embedded audio – Silverlight offers a whole lot more.  Like what happened with HDDVD, Blu Ray technology won out because of  certain industries.  The same decisions by similar industries – online gaming for one - have been made to go with Silverlight.  Silverlight also has more support and possibilities for enterprise data driven applications.

The release cycle of Silverlight will also have a deciding factor in who will gain more support.  It took 13 years to go from HTML 4 to 5 and that will just not do in today’s times.

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