Re: Server Sent Events vs Web Sockets?

On Mon, 12 Apr 2010, Dominique Hazael-Massieux wrote:
> 
> Given the overlap I perceive between Server Sent Events and the Web 
> Sockets spec, I would be interested to know what role Server Sent Events 
> fills that Web Sockets doesn't.

Server sent events doesn't require any change to the network, it's 
compatible with almost any setup that uses HTTP today. Web Sockets 
requires that intermediaries support full-duplex connections. Server sent 
events is compatible with today's HTTP servers. Web Sockets requires new 
Web Socket servers. Server Sent Events has a variety of features that Web 
Sockets lacks by design, such as reconnection, event IDs, and the ability 
to send arbitrary events. Server Sent Events is likely to end up used as 
the basis for automated data push mechanisms (e.g. updating Web Storage or 
appcache stores).

These differences mean that there will likely be a reason for both to 
exist for a long time.


> Currently, the two documents don't reference each other at all; some 
> clarification of their relationship in the specs themselves would be 
> useful, I think.

They're part of the same document:

   http://www.whatwg.org/specs/web-apps/current-work/complete.html#comms

-- 
Ian Hickson               U+1047E                )\._.,--....,'``.    fL
http://ln.hixie.ch/       U+263A                /,   _.. \   _\  ;`._ ,.
Things that are impossible just take longer.   `._.-(,_..'--(,_..'`-.;.'

Received on Monday, 12 April 2010 17:47:54 UTC