Why WPF/E?

I see the occasional post, such as this one, asking why Microsoft is doing WPF/E.  The poster asks:

"Someone explain to me how this technology (which has yet to be released and proven) can do anything that the Flash Platform can't (do better)? Fill text with video? Come on..."

Part of the confusion here is the POV of the writer.  WPF/E came about not as a "me too" but as the result of candid conversations with Microsoft customers.  When I talk to customers including developers and CTOs that are using or entrenched in Microsoft technologies, they want to know when they'll be able to leverage their WMV assets consistently on the web across major platforms and browsers.  They ask when they'll be able to use their Microsoft developer skill sets (including C# and XAML) to create experiences that extend beyond the desktop.  They want to know if or when Microsoft will provide a richer web development experience that integrates well with their current JavaScript and HTML model.  So at the core, WPF/E is about something fundamentally different than a "me too" technology - it's about providing a continuum for developers/designers/CTOs across the full Microsoft developer/designer product offering.  Note that the value of WPF/E extends beyond the Microsoft developer as we've tried to make it easy and approachable for a broad range of users and scenarios but first and foremost it must be consistent with other Microsoft product offerings.  Obviously, this is not something the Flash Platform can or should be.

Comments

• Anonymous
  November 12, 2006
  The comment has been removed

• Anonymous
  November 13, 2006
  How soon will we see a CTP?  I've been looking forward to kicking WPF/E around for some time :o)  Could you publish some sample code to show how the mini CLR would be used in practice? (I like the Javascript thing, but I'd much rather use C# in some form and have the option to compile my code, even if it is heavily sandboxed). Thanks!

• Anonymous
  November 15, 2006
  Looking forward to the CTP :) Good luck with your efforts and have a great day :) Bob Hanson

• Anonymous
  November 17, 2006
  Lots of links: When I have so many browser windows and tabs open it's time to harvest some... here are some links I've found this week that I found interesting, and you may too....

• Anonymous
  December 02, 2006
  You are a savior!  I am so happy to see the great development tools and amazing new presentation technologies getting delivered to our friends on the Mac.   This is going to make for one insanely tight "Office on the web" solution.  Any idea where I can find the Powerpoint to XAML converter?  It's time to start publishing those Office documents to XAML and XPS. BTW, is XPS supported with WPF/e?   I can't wait for 3D in WPF/e ...  You guys rawk!

• Anonymous
  January 24, 2007
  First CTP of Windows Presentation Foundation Everywhere (WPF/E) was released last december, Joe Stegman