Josh Smith (formerly of Infragistics) is putting on an XBAP contest! Submissions are required by March 12th. I can’t wait to see what people create!

As Tim Sneath announced earlier in his blog today, the British Library has released a just awesome XBAP.  I’ve been giddy about this app since I saw the first prototype.  Here’s an example of technology really opening doors and offering new experiences.  The public can see these Da Vinci’s notebooks, Mozart’s compositions, and many other (usually locked up) rare books in a fuller fidelity, richer environment than ever before. Tim goes in to all the specific coolness of the app in his post.  I definitely recommend the read. Try out “Turning the Pages” here.  

Hats off to the Japanese design agency Bascule for this excellent xbap.  The funky 3D & music is just awesome.  A great watch.   Notice the little camera in the lower left hand corner? Click on it to control the camera position and zoom in/out. Sweetness.   Thanks Karsten for the tip!

XAML Browser Applications (XBAPs) in this version are promptless in-browser experiences.  This has many implications: clean experience when navigating to an XBAP.  (There is no Information Bar or security warning before launching the app.)  cached (not installed) on the user’s machine. security sandbox.   Sandboxed Applications The third bullet above is especially important for XBAP developers.   XBAPs obey the security contract of being in the browser: they are sandboxed according to their deployment zone.  Today, there is no way to seamlessly “elevate” and prompt the user for additional permissions.  (This is an often-requested feature and something we are investigating for …