Sun Microsystems hopes to enlist some of the Internet's most
popular Web sites to help promote the use of Java on PCs,
particularly those running Windows XP.
To help spur the use of Java on PCs running the XP operating
system, Sun is striking up deals with major Web sites that will
make the latest version of Java Virtual Machine available as a
simple download, said Rich Green, Sun's vice-president and general
manager of Java Software.
Green did not reveal which companies will take part in the project,
but said Web sites owned by the likes of Yahoo and AOL Time Warner
would make good partners for Sun.
"We are focusing our energy on 20 or 30 sites that would give Java
to anyone for free," Green said. "Yahoo sponsors a lot of
Java-based games. They would be motivated to keep that site
fresh."
Java is popular among software developers in part because it can
run on a wide range of computing platforms with little changes to
an application's underlying code. The technology can be used to
develop applications ranging from games that run on cell phones to
sophisticated business programs that sit on high-end servers.
While its position on small computing devices and big servers
appears strong, Java's future on the PC has faced uncertainty.
Microsoft and Sun have battled over the technology since 1997,
primarily because Sun felt Microsoft was making changes to Java
that would limit its ability to run on any platform.
The companies squared off in a lengthy lawsuit and eventually
settled the matter in January. As part of the settlement, Microsoft
agreed to pay Sun $20m (£13.8m) and was limited to using an older
version of Java in its products.
Following the dispute, Microsoft decided not to include a Java
Virtual Machine (JVM) with Windows XP. A JVM is a program that sits
on a user's PC and allows them to run Java applications. Without a
JVM, users are unable to run Java applets, such as stock tickers
and games, that are used on some Web sites.
PC makers such as Compaq and Dell have said they will include a JVM
with their Windows XP machines. Compaq and Dell, however, use an
older version of the JVM made by Microsoft. Sun is in talks with
five or six of the major OEMs to get a more updated JVM included
with Windows XP, Green said.
"If it worked out, they would probably put the JVM on the second or
third wave of the XP rollout," Green said.
Sun also hopes to persuade leading Web sites to offer a JVM that
users can download to their desktop and notebook PCs, he
said.
Microsoft may be forced to include a more recent version of the JVM
with Windows XP in any case, if the District of Columbia and the
nine states that chose not to settle with Microsoft in the US
government's antitrust case have their way. A set of remedies
proposed by the plaintiffs includes a provision that would require
Microsoft to include a JVM that is Windows compatible with the
latest version of Java.
"We would obviously like that because it fulfils the offer we have
had outstanding for a long time," Green said. "All we are asking
from any licensee is that you get out the latest stuff in a set
amount of time from its release and you run the compatibility
tests."