It's bothering me. Microsoft Silverlight - the "Flash rip-off". Only, it seems that there isn't much point in just ripping off a product these days.
So, what has Silverlight got that Flash doesn't?
It seems that a couple of years ago, Microsoft cottoned on to the Firefox 'Flashblock' plugin, and came face-to-face with a dilemma. Microsoft in conjunction with the world's major consumer corporations: MacD's, SpaceBucks Nike, et al, planned for advertising to be a large revenue stream on the Internet. You as the consumer were supposed to accept advertising, no matter what. No questions asked. You were mean't to be controlled. But that wasn't to be with Flash advertising. What happened was, the Flash onslaught came too soon. People became annoyed with their browsing experience, with Flash-ad heavy sites overloading their computers and bringing their self-paid for hardware to it's knees. So, some bright spark came up with the soloution to selectively turn them on, or off at your descretion. Choice is great! Whee!
But in the eyes of the mighty consumer corporation, choice is not great. You can read in Firefox's plugin forum about 'certain' people's belief that, blocking advertising, is stealing. Out-and-out theft. Simple. It is not your right to choose if you receive advertising on any scale, if your computer is on the cusp of a breakdown, then tough. Web 'services' are provided free to the consumer, and the site provider collects revenue through advertising, and your zombie-like acceptance of happy Ronald animated adverts. It is not your right to choose.
Now, back to Microsoft Silverlight. The problem with Adobe Flash, was that it was plug-in based - You got to choose to download the plugin onto your own computer. The developers could use various Adobe/Macromedia products to create Flash adverts...I mean applications at various costs. Because Flash is a plug-in, it allows you the consumer to turn it off if you wish. Silverlight on the otherhand is being developed as a built in browser application for Microsoft IE only. The emphasis is on built-in. You as the consumer have no choice, and no control over it's function. You will accept it. You will therefore, accept the adverts, and whatever is decided to be streamed to you. The consumer world will be rosy once more, money will be spent on idle pointless crap, and the media will stop yelling "CREDITCRISIS! DESPAIR! MotherfuckingSharePriceCrash!!!!!!" at you. Like some crazy Tourette's lady.
The problem for the future arises here:
- Will Microsoft allow Silverlight to be a plugin for Forefox? I doubt it at the moment. It's too important for corporations to ensure that you have no control over what you look at. Money is dependent upon it. Share price is dependent upon it. Power & control is dependent upon it.
- Will Flash & Firefox die? If the Corporations abandon Flash, for Silverlight, which I can promise you they will do. Does this mean that these applications will struggle to maintain an audience? Will the free seeking population become owerwhelmed by the consumer zombies? And the might of persuasive consumer propaganda, trample upon the meek hardwon squeaks of the free individual?
Maybe, as the internet is an ever evolving entity afterall, people will hoist themselves up once more, and develop other, better Facebarks & Myplaces, and hopefully we're not too lazy, or set in our lethargy to develop better, more interesting places to network and communicate together, with the choice to choose if we receive the advertising bombardment, with better forms of communication possible, without censorship, and without cost.
It is possible. And, I say we as free thinking. web developers, should go one step further, and attack newspapers and television head on. E-ink readers will enable us to shut up tabloids at our choosing, and well.. Who watches plain old television anyway? Radio could do with a good kicking in my honest opinion. How hard is it to create a radio station anyhow? 
But, if the established 'social' networks (I say 'social' because they're not really are they? Meeting new wonderful people is rather fleeting and hard to maintain. Friends come and go, and drift apart before you have even realised it). But, if the established social networks keep building, and exclaiming "Try the NEW! version! 2.1!!! It's awesome!", then it is possible that we as consumers will become increasingly lethargical and dumb, and accept what is approaching on the horizon. And that horizon is filled with hamburgers, sneakers, and Venti-sized coffee.