The Viability of Java Applet Based Web Applications

Today I see fewer applets on the web. In many cases they are hidden and are used to perform specialized non-visual tasks. Applets are still a good way to incorporate client-side interactivity without overloading the application server. Let’s see what would be your reach if you do decide to deploy Java applet based solutions.

The web stats for this (technically focussed) blog reveals Java is enabled in browser for around 94% of my visitors. This is a large reach irrespective of how you decide to slice it.

AJAX doesn’t solve what Applet was designed to do. AJAX applications puts the load on servers whereas an applet (or Flash) based solution which can optimally distribute the processing load.