Microsoft Silverlight

Softonic Rating:: Very good
License:: Free
Added:: September 5, 2007
Publisher:: Website
File size:: 1.38 MB
Downloads:: 795

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“Deliver rich interactive applications on the web”

Microsoft's long awaited answer to Adobe's Flash is finally released. This lightweight (1,4Mb) plug-in works on most popular browsers both on Mac and PC. It's really simple to install, and you'll just need to restart your browser to make it work. We went to the Silverlight home page to see the plug-in in action. Although it's got a lot of snazzy effects, obviously set up by Microsoft to impress users, the plug-in worked smoothly and we experienced good image quality. Silverlight can stream high resolution video well and supports HD quality videos.

Developers will be glad to know that you can write managed .NET code that runs right in the browser. Using Expression Studio and Visual Studio (which are separate from Silverlight), designers and developers can build their own Rich Internet Applications with Silverlight.

On the downside, Silverlight supports Windows Media audio and video, VC-1 and MP3 but not other popular formats like H.264, Flash or AAC. Flash still remains the reference by far, but with many big content providers looking to use Silverlight we should be seeing more of it in the near future.

Languages:

English

Minimum requirements for Microsoft Silverlight:

OS: Win2000/XP/2003/Vista

Minimum requirements:

Internet Explorer 6 or later
Firefox 1.5 or later

Pros

Cross platform
Streams high resolution video
Supports HD quality

Cons

No support for H264, Flash or AAC

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From the publisher of Microsoft Silverlight

Silverlight is a cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in for delivering the next generation of Microsoft .NETâ€“based media experiences and rich interactive applications for the Web. It can do the following:

Deliver media experiences and rich interactive applications (RIAs) for the Web that incorporate video, animation, interactivity, and stunning user interfaces.
Seamless, fast installation for users, thanks to a small, on-demand, easy-to-install plug-in that is under 2 megabyte (MB) in size and works with all leading browsers.
Consistent experiences between Windows-based and Macintosh computers without any additional installation requirements.
Create richer, more compelling Web experiences that take greater advantage of the client for increased performance.
Stunning vector-based graphics, media, text, animation, and overlays that enable seamless integration of graphics and effects into any existing Web application.
Enhance existing standards/AJAX-based applications with richer graphics and media, and improve their performance and capabilities by using Silverlight.