What is a "Web Application"?

Question

Here, Google is talking about "web apps". Is a "web app" just an Android app that is connected to the web? Android app you need internet access for?

Answer 1

"Web app" is simply a broad term that can be used to refer to any web based/hosted site or service that involves a significant amount of user interaction, user generated content, or provides a "rich" user experience or a service API for third-parties to integrate with. A web app interface will "run" inside of a web browser, while typically all of the state handling and business logic will be handled by a backing server.

Google App Engine exists to provide a platform for implementing the "backing server" component of a web app (as well as basic hosting for the static resources needed by the app).

The concept of a web app really has nothing to do directly with Android apps. However, an Android app may (and many Android apps commonly do) communicate with a web app to provide various features or services within the app (think weather, Facebook integration, etc.). And in certain cases it is possible to implement a "quick and dirty" Android app by simply pointing a WebView at an existing web app's URL. In such a case that Android app's WebView becomes the "browser" that the web app's UI runs in.

Answer 2

Web app traditionally means a browser-based UI.

Google Web Apps was introduced in 2008, before the rise of the iPhone and Android. I would say those are a later addition to the definition.

If the client is using HTTP as its communication protocol with back-end services, I would call it a "web app", regardless of what the client hardware is.