With today’s launch of PhoneGap 1.0, a framework that allows developers to build mobile apps using Web standards, it seemed like a good time to put up a poll about HTML as an app platform. HTML, and in particular, HTML5, has come a long way to addressing the needs of cross-platform development by delivering a platform where apps can run on any modern browser. But is it ready yet for you? How do you use HTML when building your apps? Or do you?
Share your thoughts on HTML as an app platform in this week’s ReadWriteMobile poll.
There is a growing awareness about HTML as an app platform, but it still has some catching up to do when compared with its native counterparts. HTML apps need increased access to native APIs, improved runtimes (native aps don’t need to worry with Web runtime barriers), and there needs to be more consistency in terms of how Web apps run across various platforms. We’d also like to see more apps that take advantage of HTML5 features, like offline access, for example.
On the other hand, the Web is easy to build for, flexible, future proof (to some extent), and comes very close to the “write once, run anywhere” holy grail.
Not all apps do well built solely using HTML, however. Those needing access to native features (e.g. integration with the camera), rich media, high performance (e.g. gaming), etc., may do better with a native approach.
So now it’s your turn: have you used HTML to build your mobile applications? What did you learn from the experience? Tell us in this week’s ReadWriteMobile poll and/or in the comments below.
