Dehoh

Dekoh is desktop platform for applications that deliver integrated experience of web and desktop. Along with the free Dekoh Desktop, comes a gallery of personal media applications and Dekoh Network service that helps users share content/applications directly off their PC. Dekoh is a product of Pramati

Dekoh

Dekoh is desktop platform for applications that deliver integrated experience of web and desktop. Along with the free Dekoh Desktop, comes a gallery of personal media applications and Dekoh Network service that helps users share content/applications directly off their PC.

Netjaxer

NetJaxer - Web 2.0 on your desktop - easily launch gmail, writely, kiko, meebo and other ajax web applications right from your desktop, start menu or taskbar.

Ajax13

Is a new office suite: ajaxWrite is a web-based word processor that can read and write Microsoft Word and other open standard document formats. With the look and feel similar to Microsoft Word, ajaxWrite provides a powerful yet familiar and easy-to-use word processing environment. ajaxSketch is a web-based drawing tool that handles the SVG format natively. With a familiar drawing interface, ajaxSketch allows you to create and edit complex SVG images that are easily imported into Microsoft Visio, Adobe Illustrator, Inksape, Macromedia Freehand, and other SVG capable programs. The ajaxXLS viewer and editor allow you to create and edit Microsoft Excel and OpenOffice spreadsheets. The ajaxXLS familiar and easy-to-use interface allows you to handle all your basic spreadsheet needs directly from your browser. ajaxTunes is a web-based music player that lets you perform the common functionalities of your favorite player. In addition, ajaxunes has been preloaded with a demo account containing dozens of songs for you to listen to immediately. ajaxTunes also plays music from your MP3Tunes locker. This presentation editor lets your read, create and save Microsoft PowerPoint and OpenOffice presentation files. In addition to a familiar web-based interface that allows you to easily handle presentation files, ajaxPresents also provides a publishing utility so you can share your files with your colleagues and collect feedback from visitors. This AJAX-aware operating system has integrated the power of web-based applications with Linspire. ajaxOS has been configured to use AJAX software directly from the Firefox browser rather than conventionally installed software. ajaxOS recognizes any compatible file and launches the most up-to-date software from the web.

Ceedo

Download and install Ceedo on your USB flash drive and start using your personal working environment on-the-go.

WinLike

WinLIKE is the first professional Window-Manager for web browsers. With WinLIKE, developers can provide web applications, websites and portals with little windows - like you are used to from your desktop. WinLIKE is a Web 2.0 application based on DHTML and is only 27 kB in size. It works without any plugins in the Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 and Netscape Navigator 6.1 or higher and other related browsers (Mozilla 0.92, Firebird 0.7, Galeon, Avant etc.) and also Lynx or search engines. Neither web servers or databases nor script languages like ASP, PHP etc. are needed, but supported. WinLIKE-sites are standard HTML-sites and even work from your hard disk. What exactly does the Window-Manager do? - The Window-Manager is a program which displays and administrates different overlapping windows (visual containers for content) on your screen. For this purpose the Window-Manager offers functions like creating, closing, moving or minimizing windows and provides the all important foreground-/ background functions for overlapping windows. Here is a list with the most important features of WinLIKE: each window content is loaded separatly from the server background changing does not destroy the open windows normal links with TARGETs can load content into a window FORM-submits into different windows history for each window customizable WinList like a TaskBar overlapping combo-boxes anytime (skin & content) different skins for windows on one HTML page different languages on one HTML page formular based relative and absolute window positioning behavior supporting AJAX and content Drag&Drop Deeplinks for direct links to window content Drag&Save-Links for saving a whole site in a simple link powerfull Personalisation wich just a Cookie sound effects for audio warnings transparent windows and skins visual editor for easy window definitions API for full window control and much more

YouOS

Before I’ve started writing this piece, the only OS I’ve heard something about in the news was YouOS. And you can see that a fair amount of serious development went into the product, as there are quite a number of useful applications here, including a very good chat client, IM software, file browser, RSS reader and a couple of others. The applications can be moved accross the desktop, look pretty much like standard desktop apps and respond well with some minor issues (for example, the resizing of the RSS reader window did not go too smoothly). You can browse through your open applications using a toolbar similar to the Windows taskbar, which also works as intended. Unfortunately, YouOS is a bit lacking in the design department. It’s windows and applications are usable, but they’re certainly not beautiful. It does not impede the functionality, but it does somewhat diminish the overall experience.[http://franticindustries.com/] As far as the general usability applications go, I’d say YouOS takes a second place to Goowy. Its apps are fully functional, but lack a few details, be it in the design or functionality department, that would keep me from using YouOS on a daily basis. However, YouOS is definitely a very serious contender in the WebOS field, and it might turn into a force to be reckoned with.

XinDesk

XinDESK is the only one out of the 10 WebOS apps listed here that I didn’t actually try out, because they don’t have a demo or an alpha version yet. However, browsing through the author’s blog one can find some interesting facts about the service. Here’s a couple of quotes: “The core of Xindesk is a WebOS featuring application that opens and saves the standard office formats. Xindesk is the first web operating system that works easily, even for people without deep computer knowledge. The WebOS is an open platform, just like Windows and Mac OS. This enables anyone to develop new applications.” “Every Xindesk application you develop can also be installed on all versions of windows.” All in all, it doesn’t sound too shoddy, and I look forward to checking out this service again when it’s available to the public. You can check out a couple of screenshots over at XinDESK blog.[http://franticindustries.com]

Orca

WebOS is a pretty complex application and there’s no two ways about it. So when I see things like “Muly” as one choice for the month of birth or when the “create account” button is missing altogether, I think “sloppy”. And that’s exactly how Orca turned out to be in the end. I will utter three little words and 70% of readers will skip to the next item in the list: no Firefox support. And they’re right: you simply cannot create an application meant primarily for tech-aware users and not have support for the tech-savvy browser of choice. But even in IE, Orca is simply an unfinished, early alpha, hey-i-can-now-invite-a-few-friends-to-test-this product. Best of luck to the developers, but at this stage Orca is not worth your time. *Update: one of Orca’s developers (thanks, Nipun) contacted me through comments and we’ve come to the conclusion that my bad experience with Orca was due to some kind of temporary bug. The screenshot that I’ve taken and that you can see here does not represent Orca in the real light. I’ve tried Orca again, and I can confirm that it worked a lot better this time. Here’s a really short recap of my second experience with Orca: - Orca does indeed feature many applications: Media Player, Zoho Office suite, a web browser, calendar, RSS reader, notepad, file manager and several games. Although still not bug-free, when I’ve tried it the second time all of these applications were fully usable. - Nipun also pointed out to me that the developers of Orca are preparing a new version which will support browsers other than IE. He also told me about Orczilla, a “linux distribution, which you can boot of the CD (or install) and boot into a browser that opens your Orca Desktop.” This is an interesting concept which can make a WebOS a step closer to real, desktop operating systems.

Glide Next OS 2.0

This text was actually postponed because Glide registration was closed until 19th of December, and I wanted to squeeze it into this list. And lo and behold; they’ve gotten real serious after the relaunch. So serious that besides free registration, they offer things like family standard and family premium plans (for the last one the fee is $149.95 yearly). For registration. they also require verification via an SMS message. This got me interested, as it is the only WebOS around that thinks of itself highly enough to actually start charging for the service. And, to some extent, Glide delivers. It’s Flash-based, and it’s not really trying to mimic Windows or any similar desktop environment, choosing a unique GUI of its own instead. It lets you upload and store up to 1 GB of files, read RSS feeds, manage bookmarks, appointments, chat, create documents, view picturess. It’s also designed pretty well - at least at first sight. However, it’s somewhat similar to DesktopTwo in some areas, sharing a number of negative traits with it. First of all, some apps open in a popup, for which I really can’t see a good reason. Furthermore, some of the applications don’t seem to be as polished graphically as the rest of the interface. Some of the apps are just plain buggy - the Calendar simply did not work, reporting an error as soon as I clicked it. These are mostly minor errors, but they add up. For me, an additional problem was the interface itself which is pretty confusing. It took time figuring out how to do simple tasks like reading RSS feeds, and once I closed certain areas of the Webtop, it was pretty hard to find them again. Like many other services in this list, you can definitely see that a lot of effort has been put into Glide, and some of its parts are done well, however it still has a long way to go (especially if you pay for it).[http://franticindustries.com]

EyeOS

Taking a bit of a different approach than other sites in this bunch, EyeOS offers you to download the EyeOS server files and install them on your on web server to use as you please. You can also try out a demo which is hosted on the free public server eyeos.info, which also provides free accounts of eyeOS to everyone who wants to use it without owning a private server. The public server is funded through donations, and there’s still quite a way to go, so if you like EyeOS, go ahead and help them. EyeOS itself is functional, not too buggy, but a bit slow and a bit bland. You have your standard calendar, calculator, address book, RSS reader, simple word processor, file uploader and a few others, but they have pretty limited functionality, and they all look more like test apps than something you’d really use in day to day work. Furthermore, some of the options simply do not work, for example changing the wallpaper. Although EyeOS seems to be an ambitious project, it doesn’t offer much more than, for example, Craythur. It looks nice, it works, but its apps aren’t interesting enough to actually use it for any serious work.[http://franticindustries.com]

DeskTopTwo

If there’s such things as “serious WebOS players”, Desktoptwo is one of them. It’s a Flash based fully featured WebOS which requires registration to try, immediately giving you your own mini-site and your own Desktoptwo email address to use. Desktoptwo is Flash-based, and while I’m not thrilled about Flash Web 2.0 applications, most of the OSes from this list work in Flash, and I must admit that some do it pretty well. Desktoptwo’s apps can be slow, and a certain amount of bugs are present (when i clicked on Message Board preferences, everything got garbled up), but not so much to ruin your experience with the service. One more thing: Desktoptwo opens in a popup, which is sure to annoy some users. Feature-wise, Desktoptwo delivers and then some. You’ve got search, clock and sysinfo widget, a dock, MP3 player, RSS reader, Instant messenger, OpenOffice, HTML editor, notepad, and several others. Unfortunately, several of these open in popups, which somehow makes you remember you’re in Windows. Furthermore, if you close the Desktoptwo window and log in again, some of your settings are forgotten. However, your content, for example, the files you save to the desktop, or the RSS feeds you add in the very functional RSS reader are remembered over sessions, which is good. Overall, Desktoptwo does many things well, but it needs to iron out a few usability/UI issues to become a really usable WebOS. [franticindustries.com]

CrayThur

Craythur is a completely new WebOS that puts big emphasis on looks, and it does that part really well, with a well chosen desktop background and transparent window borders similar to those Vista’s Aero. However, the apps themselves are more alpha than beta. For one thing, they’re mostly not translated from Spanish. They work, but nothing more than that; none of them can hold their own against any decent comparative application, web-based or otherwise. Since this is obviously an application at its very early stages, let’s just leave it at good-looking and come back in a few months to see the progress. [franticindustries.com]

Goowy

Goowy (the phonetic of GUI, or graphical user interface) blurs the lines between Web browser and desktop. It provides a Web-based operating environment, reminiscent of Linux, with e-mail, 1GB of file storage, instant messaging, games, contact and calendar management, and "minis"—small applets that provide at-a-glance access to to-do lists, Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds, search engines, and more. True to its name, Goowy wraps all this in an attractive, icon-driven interface. It's a polished, impressive service, and while we can't imagine anyone abandoning Windows or the Mac OS for it, it definitely proves the viability of a Web-based operating system.