Articles by Alex Iskold

AJAX Patterns: Introducing JavaScriptBeans – Bringing JavaBeans to JavaScript

Mon, 23 Oct 2006 14:00:00 EDT

Six month ago, Alex Iskold switched from J2EE Grid Computing to Web 2.0, JavaScript and Firefox extension development. He has been writing in Web 2.0 Journal about his experiences - see 'From J2EE to JavaScript.' This is the next instalment...

Firefox 2.0: Burning the Fire to Outfox IE

Thu, 19 Oct 2006 10:15:00 EDT

It has been just two years since Firefox appeared on the scene, but this Mozilla browser has surely changed the rules of the game. Firefox brought back the spirit, the innovation and the crowds of followers. Firefox is not only the underdog we are rooting for, it is a movement that is strong on business, community and ideas. And with the latest release the Firefox team has shown its razor-sharp focus on software quality and the understanding of what it takes to win the market.

Towards the Infrastructure for Attention Ecosystem

Thu, 12 Oct 2006 10:15:00 EDT

With this article I hope to reach out to the companies and thought leaders working in the attention space and start the dialog on the infrastructure for the Attention Economy. Note that the views presented in this article are my own and do not represent the views of the AttentionTrust organization.

The Emerging "Attention Platform" – From Attention to Personalization

Mon, 25 Sep 2006 09:15:00 EDT

Last week I wrote here about the need to work out the architecture of attention. This week I will focus on a specific application attention platform: personalization. My article last week generated really interesting and important discussion about the the value of attention-capturing. We questioned the utility of attention and concluded that using attention to fuel personalization would be a great service that a lot of people can use.

What Does the "Architecture of Attention" Look Like?

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 15:45:00 EDT

To make the concept of attention compelling and to prove to the consumers that their attention information is important, we need to build applications that provide useful services. And to build these applications we need a platform for the attention players to plug into. In short, we need attention ecosystem, where application providers can interplay and deliver definitive value to the end users.

Web 2.0 Journal Feature: Google Plays API Catch-Up with Amazon

Wed, 23 Aug 2006 02:15:00 EDT

The Google Base API is like Amazon S3 on steroids. In addition to pure storage capability, this API comes with concept of RSS-based structured data types, ability to automatically index and search the data, as well as storing and publish things via RSS. It is interesting, unexpected move, since the service seems to mash storage and publishing together.

Amazon - The Real Web Services Company

Thu, 17 Aug 2006 15:30:00 EDT

I am biased writing this article because my company is a big user of Amazon Web Services. But please read on and see why I am so excited about what the largest online retailer is doing these days. Not only Amazon is the real Web Services company now, it is becoming an icon for the 21st century software tools company. Not Microsoft, not IBM not even Google, but Amazon has been quietly, and recently not so quietly, building the blocks of the next generation software platform.

User Interface 2.0

Thu, 10 Aug 2006 14:00:00 EDT

One of the things that attracts us all to Web 2.0 is that it is slick. Stuff pops up, floats, appears and disappears showcasing us the power of effects possible with today's JavaScript. We sit there in awe, thinking, wow, that was cool! Cool is what compels us to give it a try. Cool is marketing. But cool is not the substance. Clearly, in order for us to adapt a new application it needs to demonstrate the utility beyond cool. It needs to be useful and usable, preferably daily.

The Web 2.0 Bookshelf

Fri, 21 Jul 2006 11:45:00 EDT

The new web is all about creativity, cross-pollination of concepts, media and information. But what fuels this new web is networks. In his recent article, Dion Hinchcliffe calls social networks the Web 2.0 secret sauce. Very rightly so, because networks are one of the fundamental blocks or patterns occurring in nature. So the some of the books that I assembled for the Web 2.0 bookshelf are about patterns in nature and power of networks.

Alex Iskold's "AJAX Patterns" Series: Concurrent Document Loader Pattern

Mon, 17 Jul 2006 16:45:00 EDT

Pattern: Concurrent Document Loader Problem: Need to load multiple documents and can't proceed until all of them are loaded Example: Load configuration files for an AJAX application

Alex Iskold's "AJAX Patterns" Series: From Java to JavaScript

Fri, 30 Jun 2006 06:15:00 EDT

In the beginning of 2006, Alex Iskold - after spending the last 10 years of his career programming in Java - took off his Java hat and started a Web 2.0 company called adaptiveblue. In this Web 2.0 Journal exclusive, he shares his insights on transitioning from Java into the Web 2.0 development world.

i-Technology Viewpoint: How Amazon S3 is Going to Change the World

Mon, 12 Jun 2006 05:30:00 EDT

Amazon S3 is an innovative, exciting new service that is going to change the way we do computing on the web. Even though the service launched just a few months ago, numerous companies are already leveraging it for a wide range of purposes.

Smart Browser, Where Art Thou?

Thu, 25 May 2006 18:15:00 EDT

In 1998, I got my hands on Mitchell Waldrop's book called 'Complexity'. Ever since, I've been on an amazing journey discovering one of the most profound developments in modern science. Complexity, or more formally, the study of complex systems, is about unifying themes that run through all modern scientific disciplines including physics, biology, economics, ecology, linguistics, and sociology.

The "Webification" of the Desktop: What Are the Implications for Web 2.0 and AJAX?

Thu, 25 May 2006 08:30:00 EDT

There's no reason why our desktop applications cannot be web-aware. An improvement in this area would drive up our productivity, because switching back and forth between the application and the browser is very inefficient. This article looks at some examples of apps that already succeed in integrating web sites and web services into our desktops.