I'm developer for a small company (less than 10 people).  An important part of my mandate is to maximize value per invested development dollar.  I look around me at the software development industry and it seems that _everyone_ is flogging Web 2.0 apps and interfaces to systems.  Perhaps it's the latent luddite in me, or perhaps it's just comon sense, but my experience has been that it is SO MUCH easier to develop rich user experiences in rich client platforms as compared to web/thin client environments.  I understand that web apps simplify application deployment and (to some extent) debugging, but let's face it, Web 2.0 is an _attempt_ to provide rich client experience over the web... and this requires considerable extra effort to overcome the inherently stateless nature of web protocols.

 So, in considering focusing on a web UI for an application, aside from the insecure pissing contest that can arise from staying current with the latest technology fad, what true value is there for the regular smaller company whose business is _not_ directly based in IT, but is dependend on it (ie. IT is needed to get the job done, but the focus is delivering a non-IT service).

 Take OnTime for example.  Clearly these folks have put a lot of effort into their web UI for the application, and for a web UI, it's pretty good.  But in comparison to the Windows client, it's definitely clunky and inferior.  I bet you that he Axosoft team has put a lot of effort to make the web UI as rich and flexible as possible, but let's face it... it's a LOT more work to achieve an equivalent level of control and impact as you can in a Windows client.

 So, what gives?  Is it like cell phones, where the nifty ability to have flexible and portable communication somehow makes us overlook and accept substandard (compared to land lines) communications, where there are echos, dropped calls, we can get billed astronomical rates by the _minute_, etc., etc., etc. 

 Yes it's really cool that we we can create desktop-like experiences in Web applications, partly because the concept is so unusual and often takes so much EXTRA effort develop.  But in a situation where one is trying to squeeze as much value as possible out of every development dollar, does it make sense to develop web-based apps for a small audience?

Whaddiyathink?

 - john.