<p>With the advent of techniques such as AJAX, the bar has been raised for what users have come to expect from web applications. However, although web application development often starts off simple, limitations in the web programming model might start to show when the business requirements become more complex. To successfully implement large-scale web application, software developers need to have knowledge of a big set of complementary technologies.</p><p>This thesis describes the implementation of a prototype of a central hotel property management system using web technologies. These technologies are then compared to an alternative set of technologies, which are used for implementing a second prototype; a stand-alone desktop client distributed using Java Web Start.</p><p>The thesis highlights some of the current problems with the web programming model and shows how the user experience can be improved by instead using desktop technologies.</p>

With the advent of techniques such as AJAX, the bar has been raised for what users have come to expect from web applications. However, although web application development often starts off simple, limitations in the web programming model might start to show when the business requirements become more complex. To successfully implement large-scale web application, software developers need to have knowledge of a big set of complementary technologies. This thesis describes the implementation of a prototype of a central hotel property management system using web technologies. These technologies are then compared to an alternative set of technologies, which are used for implementing a second prototype; a stand-alone desktop client distributed using Java Web Start. The thesis highlights some of the current problems with the web programming model and shows how the user experience can be improved by instead using desktop technologies.