Hallo, I just want to put a topic, general discussion about one issue. One gereal question, if I may. What do you think about the whole idea of this madness around Rich Internet Applications. AJAX, JavaScript, Flash, Flex, SilverLight... all this makes the work of a programmer doubled and the effect is a few nicer animations and drag-drop (which is often totaly unnecessary). What is wrong with the old-school HTML web applications, easy to create, easy to maintain, super fast and transparent. Every internet user 100% is aware of how to navigate an HTML application. And maybe 100% of this Rich Internet Applications are so over-designed that you have no idea where to click or what to do next!?
The point of RIA is not which tech is used to create them but how do they function; specifically, do they function like a desktop application. In most cases, HTML, CSS and javascript are adequate. What you are bringing up is all the flashing, blinking lights and animation which, frequently, is unnecessary and just marketing bling. Flash and Silverlight are just other ways to do the same thing or adds functionality not available or as easily achieved in javascript. Even that's a questionable statement.
This is the greates mistake of the whole story. Even the richest rich application is 1000 times "poorer" than a simple desktop app. For example the simplest applications in Window MS Paint, there is nothing like this in the web. What to talk about a Word, Powerpoint or similar. Web applications are about some data presented in a table and add, edit, delete records...
Then you've not seen one or don't realize you have. Whether there is something like it on the net does not matter or change the definition of what RIA is or whether it could work. You don't know what you're talking about.