It is exciting that Windows 8 is supporting so many languages for Metro App development. One that especially interested me was the HTML5/CSS/JavaScript. What I don't understand, is this code going to get compiled in a sort of executable (like the C#, VB, and C++ option), or would my app basically be running in IE as an actual web page?
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So how does it run in Windows 8 Metro Apps? In a slimmed down IE? – Greg Potter Dec 28 '11 at 16:22
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@GregPotter Yes, pretty much. It's "slimmed down" in a sense that there's no chrome other than what's standard for Metro apps. It's extended in a sense that you can load WinRT components (including your own custom one) and call them, which you cannot do in IE proper. But it is a browser, with DOM etc. – Pavel Minaev Dec 28 '11 at 17:35
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Yes. Javascript is executed on Windows 8 by the Chakra engine. Similar to the .NET just-in-time compiler, it translates javascript to optimized machine code. Also the approach taken by Google's V8 and Mozilla's TraceMonkey engines. Some background info is here.
Hans Passant
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2To be clear, it is just-in-time compiled, but not pre-compiled. As in, you can't ship an app using JS without shipping the source code? – Gabe Dec 28 '11 at 18:26
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It is jutted, not compiled. Unlike, Net code, it cannot be compiled (NGened) – Larry Osterman Dec 29 '11 at 12:03
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Here's a video overview of some of how to use JavaScript with the new Windows 8 Runtime from BUILD2011 (slides also available on the same page). The presenter goes through a simple project with JavaScript and the WinRT and gives a pretty nice overview of WinRT in general. You can read more about all that on this related SO thread.
