Microsoft may be shifting its focus from Silverlight to HTML5 as a multiplatform solution, but the company's in-house plug-in is still an important part of its technology platforms. This commitment was underscored yesterday at the Silverlight Firestarter, where Microsoft's Scott Guthrie gave some details on the next version of the software, scheduled for release later next year.
Silverlight 5 will introduce more than 40 major new features which apparently satisfy 70 per cent of the developer community's most wanted lists. However, in line with the shift away from an all-purpose solution, the majority of the additions will focus on enabling rich media and business applications.
As well as some general purpose enhancements such as native 64-bit support and greater reliance on the GPU for 2D and 3D rendering, the plug-in will include several new features relating to media playback. Topping the list are hardware decoding for H.264 video files and 'TrickPlay' which will allow media files to be played back at different speeds, enabling fast-forwarding and rewinding. There will also be new power-management and system-state awareness features, improved DRM management and support for remote controls.
The new version will also ship with some enterprise application-focused features, including support for Postscript vector printing and a more fluid UI to enable smoother animations.
Even though it seems that Microsoft is going to push Silverlight as a solution for business application developers, it's still not totally clear what the future holds for the former Flash-killer. Despite some high-profile partners that have signed up to develop for the platform - which also forms the basis for Windows Phone 7 - it's still quite difficult to see what role the plug-in will have going forward.
The first beta version of Silverlight 5 is expected to be released in the first half of 2011, with a final version being planned for sometime before the end of next year.
