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Google x86 Native Browser Client Maybe Not So Crazy After All
GMGruman writes "Google's experimental technology to run native x86 binaries in the browser shows lots of potential, writes Neil McAllister. He's previously said it was a crazy idea, but a new version of Native Client (NaCl) caused McAllister to take a fresh look, which has led him to conclude the technology is crazy like a fox. McAllister explains what NaCl is useful for, how to use it, and why it's not a Java or a Flash or a JavaScript replacement, but something else."
If you havn't noticed, one of Google's intents is to make the browser you go-to place for all your needs (kinda makes sense with their business plan). And honestly i think that it is a worthy goal. This way people can make cross-platform applications and a way to distribute them all on one platform.
Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. -- Isaac Asimov
You probably should start reading about it first, please. The browser doesn't allow you to run native binaries of the system, or native code in general. It allows you to run very constrained routines in assembler code, but a very limited set of instructions, only the ones that can be secured enough. That's why you need an specialized SDK: the generated binaries have to use a very reduced set of machine instructions.
The great benefit of this, is that the generated ".nexe" files are portable accross operating systems. Basically, is a way to run heavy routines in C/C++ instead of JavaScript. The API is limited too.
It's pretty cool in the sense that you could do fancy graphics or UIs without Flash or Silverlight. You could write them in Qt or GTK+ or SDL, and the generated executable works on every OS (you'll need a recompile for ARM phones though).
If it can be refactored to a plugin for every browser, this will be the best Flash/Silverlight killer ever.