Adobe AIR 1.0b1

Adobe AIR, formerly code-named Apollo, is a cross-operating system runtime that allows developers to use their existing web development skills to build and deploy rich Internet applications to the desktop.

Adobe AIR is a great tool that enables developers to create applications that combine the benefits of web applications – network and user connectivity, rich media content, ease of development, and broad reach – with the strengths of desktop applications – application interactions, local resource access, personal settings, powerful functionality, and rich interactive experiences.

Adobe AIR enables familiar application interaction models, including drag-and-drop support, rich clipboard access, and desktop and system shortcuts.

Furthermore, Adobe AIR applications run as regular applications, and do not have to run within another application or shell (as web applications do by running within the browser).

Future releases will provide more stability, more desktop integration, and enhanced support for Ajax developers.

The Adobe AIR SDK, sample applications, and Adobe AIR documentation provide everything a developer needs to start building applications. There are also technical articles, developer videos, and sample applications located throughout the Labs site.