WebGL Standard To Bring 3D Acceleration To Browsers?

Several sources are reporting that while native audio/video support has been dropped from the HTML 5 spec, the Khronos Group has released a few details about their up and coming WebGL 3D acceleration standard. "The general principle behind WebGL is to offer a JavaScript binding to the group's OpenGL ES 2.0 system, allowing code run within the browser to access the graphics hardware directly in the same way as a standalone application can. As the technology would rely solely on JavaScript to do the heavy lifting, no browser plugin would be required — and it would be compatible with any browser which supports the scripting language alongside the HTML 5 'Canvas' element."

Comments

Re:I've got an idea!

[SanityInAnarchy]

will require programming in JavaScript

Why is this a bad thing? Or what would you suggest as a better language?

Most people who hate Javascript don't really understand it. I qualify that as "most" because a few people do know enough about it to actually have good reasons for hating it.

won't have a standard GUI framework to use

HTML is more standard than about any other GUI framework, even if less featured.

In fact, something to notice -- most people seem determined to style away the standard GUI elements. Below this message, you'll almost certainly see a "Reply to This" button and a "Parent" button, and unless you've disabled your CSS, they probably look nothing like your standard native buttons.

The issue is that most web designers hate these things, and think they're "ugly". Whether actual users care is up for debate -- they don't seem to have a problem with Google's homepage, for example.

we'll have to code our own from scratch every time as if it's MS-DOS all over again

You mean the MS-DOS, where the network was nearly nonexistent, and applications would largely be written in C or assembly?

I understand your sentiment that the browser feels like a step back, but hyperbole doesn't help your argument.

This way, people will have a pointless, non-native middle-man between their operating systems and their apps!

Better this than Java or C#.

What's more, it's hardly pointless. Or would you rather go back to the days when if you wanted something cool, like the ability to check the weather, receive email, or watch TV, you'd have to download an untrusted (possibly virus/spyware infested) binary .exe, run it on Windows, and hope it doesn't have some weird incompatibility with everything else on your system?

I much prefer the ability to try out pretty much anything I want, in my browser, without having to download/install anything, or uninstall it later. Worst case, I reload the page, or close the tab. Absolute worst case, I have to kill the browser, but no permanent harm.

Oh, and they're portable. I can play with the same apps on Windows, Linux, OS X, an iPhone...

You could argue that the browser isn't the best possible way we could've accomplished that, but those are real advantages it has over the vast majority of desktop apps, especially "fast" ones.

I've wanted nothing more than to program 3D in friggin' JavaScript.

Better than programming 3D in friggin' Flash.

If people are going to insist on taking the Web in this direction, wouldn't you rather it be based on cross-platform open standards?