In the past, companies had to forego many of the user interface and productivity advantages that other distributed computing methods, such as traditional client/server applications, used to give them. Companies looking to implement rich client technologies across a heterogeneous IT infrastructure will be most interested in a new breed of solution focused specifically on providing rich user interaction across standards-based, loosely coupled distributed computing environments. This solution set is the class of rich client-focused technologies.

Laszlo Systems has produced its own server-side offering called the Laszlo Presentation Server and XML-based development language called LZX to that provides rich client interaction and consumption of Web Services through the delivery of interactive Macromedia Flash SWF files to end-user clients.Purchase: $495