I don't think they are requiring them all to be run as web apps, but they are porting to their web/desktop platform, Flex as a sign of the power and flexability of the platform.

It would make sense if their future creative tools use AIR, which is similar to Microsoft's Silverlight. You'd be able to operate on local files and the programs would still work even if you lost your net connection.

You don't get it. AIR solves all of that. It's offline web-based app. You don't have a connection, fine. Do what you need to do but the second you're online, we validate your application and send you live updates.

Imagine a world 10 years from now where everyone bought a fully enclosed computer like you would buy an iPhone now, but you have to pay a monthly subscription service to get updates or to use it. That's why all these companies are making web-os, thinking that's the way of the future. It's going to be horrible.

I see, but how do you solve the upload problem? Does your data stay local? Does it sync when you connect? Syncing doesn't dodge the upload problem and if it's local you loose many of the benefits of a web app.

There's always going to be free services, don't worry. I'm sure the open source crowd won't stay far behind, they're able to innovate far faster.

Yes, and they throw bolts of lightning from their arses.

Seriously, as much as I like open source software (and I really like it), I can't agree with you on this. I think you're doing raymondism.

There is little innovation in the open source world; it's mostly about making better implementations of things invented long ago by companies or universities. But that's OK because in the end we get good software.

Except the open source model doesn't support SaaS very well, so if all software becomes SaaS then open source becomes much less relevant.

I'm sure RMS is thinking of yet another software license to take care of this.