In recent years it seems commodity desktop systems have outstripped the demands of software, with the possible exception of demanding video games. With enough RAM to run multiple operating systems easily, more diskspace than most users can even comprehend (let alone use), and dual-core processors running at equally incomprehensible speeds, one might expect to see richer and richer applications and user interfaces becoming the norm. While Vista and Compiz/Beryl certainly polished up the desktop, they certainly haven't done so on a scale to match the growth in raw power over the last several years.

Instead, we are seeing more and more of "Web 2.0" type applications. Gmail marked the start of this era for me, followed closely by Google Calendar, and Google Docs. I was just today introduced to Zimbra (an open-source messaging and collaboration suite with a fully AJAX based user interface). Rather than seeing richer clients to take advantage of all these unused clock cycles, the industry seems to be going back to the model of the server and the thin-client. Back when computing resources were costly, it made sense to deploy inexpensive dumb-terminals, which just rendered what the server told them to, and let all the computing occur on the server or mainframe. Interestingly enough we are returning to this model, even though modern desktops far outstrip the servers of this previous age.

If computing resources aren't the driving force to return to this model, what is? Perhaps skill and time are the critical resources now. Most end-users today cannot backup their systems, replace a bad drive, or even install new software without considerable help. Web 2.0 applications handle most of these barriers for the end-user. And with technlologies like AJAX, many of these applications rival (or even best) their desktop counterparts. Google's calendar application is an excellent example. I've recently found myself disappointed in my desktop calendar's interface (Evolution) because it was slower and more difficult to use than my Google calendar.

Here's a brief list of some of the more impressive AJAX applications I've used. If you have a favorite I've missed, please post it in a comment.

• http://mail.google.com/mail/
• http://www.google.com/calendar/
• http://docs.google.com
• http://maps.google.com/
• http://www.zimbra.com/products/
• http://www.meebo.com/