'The experience that web application users expect has changed profoundly as 'RIA' style application design has become prevalent,' says Microsoft's Joe Stagner. 'Companies developing web applications can't wait any longer to solidify their Rich Internet Application strategy.' Stagner was talking with SYS-CON.com this week as part of an informal, virtual round table on The Business Value of RIAs.

"It's a 'perfect storm' for Rich Internet Applications right now, just add up the factors..." Stagner - a popular speaker at the upcoming  in New York City in March and a senior program manager in Microsoft's Developer Tools and Platform Group - continues.

He then lists the main five, as he views it:

• Browser users are more and more experienced and non-techies have become “experienced” users.
• Web access in developed counties is approaching ubiquity and access in the rest of the world continues to grow.
• High speed access, “broadband”, high speed wireless, even phone based high speed is becoming the norm.
• Media technologies like Flash and Silverlight are enjoying great adoption.
• The social networking phenomenon, have once again made content “ number 1”.

But before going any further let's just define RIAs as currently understood, and to do that we turned to Judah Phillips, Director of Web Analytics for Reed Business Information.

In Phillips' expert view, the principal defining characteristics of RIAs include:

1. They are browser-based
2. Typically involve some level of asynchronous communication with a server
3. Enable some level of client-side processing
4. Have a user experience that feels more responsive, speedy, and aesthetically pleasing than traditional web technology
5. Provide deeper, richer functionality than what is possible using traditional web technology
6. Automatically updated
7. Platform neutral

Sam Elsemann, CEO of siteMagix, defines the principal characteristic of an RIA as above all "A user experience that is as intuitive and powerful as the experience the user is used to with desktop applications but that is also capable of leveraging collaboration and universal access from any computer on any network at any time," and this seemed such a succinct definition that we asked Simon Morris, a.k.a. Java Kid, could he go one better (shorter)?

He could.

"In short," Morris said, "an RIA is an application with all the user interface sophistication and functionality of desktop software, but with the deployment pattern of a web page."

Next page: The Business Value of RIAs

• The Business Case for Rich Internet Applications
• Where Are RIA Technologies Headed in 2008?
• i-Technology 2008 Predictions: Where's RIAs, AJAX, SOA and Virtualization Headed in 2008?
• Rich Internet Applications vs AJAX: "2008 Will Be A Crucial Year"
• Flash Player Will Remain the Best Deployment Platform for RIAs
• Moving Beyond AJAX: 2008 Is the Decision Year For RIAs
• Bringing RIAs into the Enterprise: New Challenges, New Solutions
• Rich Internet Applications: Has Microsoft Finally Seen the (Silver) Light?
• RIA Themes & Topics at AJAXWorld 2008 East: Complete Round-Up
• RIA Tookits, Frameworks and IDEs: How Do You Really Choose the Right One?
• AJAXWorld Keynote Speaker on the Risks and Rewards of RIAs
• An A to Z for the RIA Era
• Tracking RIAs with Google Analytics and Unica NetInsight
• RIAs Are Going Mobile: SYS-CON.TV Interview with Eric Farrar of Sybase
• Kevin Lynch's Passion for RIAs Secures Promotion to CTO of Adobe
• RIAs Emerge to Deliver the Information Workplace of the Future
• Appcelerator Building Out the RIA Open Source Community
• Rich Internet Applications or Rich Interactive Experiences?