It’s been relatively quiet on the Office 15 newsfront, but a new job listing by Microsoft sheds some light on the possibility of HTML5 and Javascript integration in the new productivity suite.
“Now is the time to take Office programmability to the next level. We’re a small but strong team within Visual Studio that is currently in the planning stages for Office 15 programmability tools. One of our key goals is to enable professional developers to contribute to the Office platform by making development for Office as easy and fun as building applications for the next version of Windows! Integration of JavaScript/HTML5 will enable developers to create rich applications that span clients and server, integrate with Office 365, enhance the SharePoint experience, and unlock new scenarios that unleash the great potential that lies in the combination of Office and the cloud,” the job posting states.
We already know that HTML5 and Javascript will be an essential part of Windows 8 development. Microsoft wants to deliver “web-connected and web-powered” apps that will run alongside legacy Windows apps on the company’s upcoming operating system, Windows 8. Microsoft says this approach “is designed and optimized for touch [and] it works equally well with a mouse and keyboard.”
It will be interesting to see what happens. With Microsoft’s new focus on HTML5 and Javascript, as well as an app store concept in Windows 8, we will most likely see HTML5 and JavaScript based Office 15 add-ons and applications.
