Providing a consistent way to run Java programs on PCs, mobile
phones and other client computers is the next hurdle in the
evolution of Sun's Java technology, according to the head of Java
and XML at Sun Microsystems.
With Java now an established technology for creating
business-to-business and other server-side applications, developers
need a standard way to extend those server programs and make them
accessible from a growing universe of Java-enabled client devices,
said Rich Green, vice-president and general manager for Java and
XML at Sun.
"We take the position of clients very seriously," Green said at
Sun's JavaOne conference. "The role of clients in driving the
network architecture is paramount to the whole Java model."
Sun has submitted a proposal to the Java Community Process that
defines a standard way for developers to extend Java-based Web
services applications to phones, PDAs and other devices that use
Java 2 Micro Edition (J2ME), he announced.
Included in the specification will be application programming
interfaces (APIs) and other technologies that provide a standard
way for delivering Web services applications to portable devices.
The Java Community Process is a multivendor group set up by Sun to
consider new Java standards.
The proposal is backed by tools makers including Borland Software,
and Metrowerks as well as gadget makers Research in Motion, Siemens
and Nokia, according to Green. Sun hopes it will be ready for
approval by mid-2003.
"What this technology is designed to do is extend the Web services
standards - the SOAP and XML protocols - to Java handsets," and
other client devices, he said.
Green is also trying to enforce a common Java runtime environment
for desktop PCs. He said that Microsoft should be required to
include a current Java Virtual Machine with Windows XP and other
Microsoft products, which should ensure that those products can run
Java programs.
Microsoft's .net software products are Java's main rival, and
Microsoft recently stopped supporting the technology in its
products. Many PC makers have made up for the omission by
installing Java virtual machines (JVMs) on PCs before selling
them.
He also announced two new JVMs for gadgets that he said should
boost performance and graphics capabilities and help to conserve
battery life. Developed under the code name Project Monty, the new
JVMs from Sun make use of a compiler technology used in its HotSpot
VM for servers, he said.
Green also encouraged developers to write Java applications for
mobile devices. Some 15 handset vendors offer phones that run Java
programs, and about 17 million Java phones were in use worldwide by
February this year, Green said.
"This is the year of wireless Java," declared Jouko Hayrynen,
vice-president of software for Nokia, who announced a service that
helps wireless application developers find customers for their
software. The Nokia Tradepoint Broker Service is a Web site where
developers can post and sell new J2ME applications. Nokia hopes the
service will be used for both consumer and enterprise applications,
Hayrynen said.