You must have rad all the buzz about Google new toy OpenSocial. OpenSocial is a set of common APIs that make it easy to create and host social applications on the web. OpenSocial allows developers to write an application once that will run anywhere that supports the OpenSocial APIs. Global members of the OpenSocial community include MySpace, Engage.com, Friendster, hi5, Hyves, imeem, LinkedIn, Ning, Oracle, orkut, Plaxo, Salesforce.com, Six Apart, Tianji, Viadeo, and XING.
The problem with social networking development for independent developer is portability. Every social networking site has its own APIs. When a application is developed for one social networking site, it is not compatible with another. With OpenSocial, that problem is solved. In order for developers to get started immediately, Orkut has opened a limited sandbox that you can use to start building apps using the OpenSocial APIs.
OpenSocial is built upon Google Gadget technology. With the Google Gadget Editor and a simple key/value API, you can build a complete social app with no server at all. Of course, you can also host your application on your own servers if you prefer. In all cases, Google’s gadget caching technology can ease your bandwidth demands.
Review the OpenSocial API docs. There are two ways to access the OpenSocial API: client-side using the JavaScript API and server-side using RESTful data APIs. You can get some exposure by writing your first social gadget for Orkut. Visit OpenSocial blog for the latest news.
