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  1. Does a OOB app built on Silverlight 5 work on a Windows XP machine? I have read that .NET 4.5 apps don't work on Windows OS-es before Vista, so considering Silverlight 5 is a recent release, just wondering if such apps can run on XP machines.

  2. Can a Silverlight OOB app run on Mac OS-es without any additional install? Or does it run at all?

  3. If they can be run on Mac OS, is it possible to get OS specific values like common app data path, temp path etc even on Mac OS (or their Mac equivalent)? I would need to store certain files in these paths. Or is Silverlight crippled of getting special folders considering it has to be cross platform?

  4. Would a Silverlight app meant to run on desktop (browser or without browser) run on WP7/WP8 phones as well?

I have read a bit on getting started with Silverlight but couldn't find answers to these specific questions. Thanks..

jv42
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nawfal
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1 Answers1

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Silverlight 5 is completely independent of .NET 4.5. In fact Silverlight uses a different, lighter .NET framework to WPF. It shares much of the same syntax but is implemented independently so that it can be independent.

It's a completely separate download and can run on Windows XP.

Apart from installing the usual Silverlight runtime you need for browser based applications, you don't need to install anything else to run out of browser applications.

Silverlight uses Isolated Storage to store local data. Access to the host machine is limited for security reasons. Isolated Storage is handled internally and should work identically on Windows and OSX.

As jv42 points out, applications written on Silverlight for browsers (and OOB) wouldn't work straight on WP or Xbox, they use special versions of Silverlight.

jv42
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ChrisF
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  • thanks for the answer, so you basically mean a runtime has to be installed separately on OS X and even on Windows machines if my OOB app has to work right? – nawfal Sep 06 '12 at 08:47
  • @nawfal - yes, but it's the same runtime as is installed for browser based applications. – ChrisF Sep 06 '12 at 08:56
  • Chris, I am new to all these, so please bear with my qs :) So you mean like the adobe flash plugin we got to install for flash video in browsers to work? – nawfal Sep 06 '12 at 09:00
  • @nawfal - somewhat, yes. It should install automatically (after prompt) when you visit a page with a Silverlight control for the first time. – ChrisF Sep 06 '12 at 09:04
  • mm I get that. So in effect its just like .NET framework needed for .net apps, or jvm required for java. I thought the silverlight library was just for on development machine and there is some magic involved with silverlight that it can run on any platform!! :) – nawfal Sep 06 '12 at 10:06
  • @nawfal - there is a development toolkit you need to download, again this is separate from the runtime. – ChrisF Sep 06 '12 at 10:09
  • Oh, I didn't know. Thats fine anyway..Can I ask a 4th question, would a silverlight app meant to run on desktop (browser or without browser) run on WP7/WP8 phones as well? I will include that in the question – nawfal Sep 06 '12 at 10:10
  • @nawfal No, apps written on Silverlight for browsers (and OOB) wouldn't work straight on WP or Xbox, they're special versions of Silverlight. – jv42 Sep 07 '12 at 15:05