Web Applications Through the Times

From Wikipedia.org, here is a short history of Web Applications.

In earlier types of client-server computing, each application had its own client program which served as its user interface and had to be separately installed on each user’s personal computer. An upgrade to the server part of the application would typically require an upgrade to the clients installed on each user workstation, adding to the support cost and decreasing productivity.

In contrast, Web applications dynamically generate a series of Web documents in a standard format supported by common browsers such as HTML/XHTML. Client-side scripting in a standard language such as JavaScript is commonly included to add dynamic elements to the user interface. Generally, each individual Web page is delivered to the client as a static document, but the sequence of pages can provide an interactive experience, as user input is returned through Web form elements embedded in the page markup. During the session, the Web browser interprets and displays the pages, and acts as the universal client for any Web application.