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What: A Federal court finds in favor of Eolas and against Microsoft on Web plug-in patent.

When: August 11, 2003

FUD: Now that Eolas has bested Microsoft in court and pressured the software vendor to modify Internet Explorer, an "end of days" scenario will ensue for Web-based app developers.

FUDBust: Pending an injunction and appeal, Microsoft may modify its browser, morphing its plug-in approach to embedded apps. It may take the easy route and pay or purchase Eolas. Or the company may pull the plug on its plug-in architecture to avoid future royalties, which would put a serious crimp on all IE-based Java, Flash, ActiveX and even some JavaScript apps.

But maybe we should thank Eolas for putting the platform-dependent, stability-averse plug-in architecture out of its misery. The world won't stop turning without plug-ins. Browser-based app vendors can rest easy in the knowledge that this patent will not prevent them from running their code as a helper app, which launches from a Web page but does not live or work there. Plus, for companies not able to retool internal apps, there's always the option of dead-ending their browser upgrade path and sticking with older editions.

Of course, that doesn't help the Flash-dependent among us. Even so, there are other, more W3C-friendly vector graphic technologies out there, like the SVG standard. As in all things, we have options.

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