Java allies ape Microsoft's methods
Published: 22 Sep 2003 12:05 BST
Big Java software makers are focusing on Web services, since businesses are adopting Web services standards to link existing applications.
This week, Java's inventor, Sun, will show off a new tool at its SunNetwork conference in San Francisco called Project Rave. The tool is designed to appeal to the millions of .Net developers familiar with Visual Basic. Sun plans to introduce Rave by the middle of next year.
"We got a lot of feedback from companies that they would like to use Java if the productivity and simplicity could be mirrored with what they experienced with Visual Basic," said Richard Green, vice president of development tools at Sun. "This will benefit Sun...(and) creating this greater appeal for Java is good for the overall industry."
BEA Systems recently launched WebLogic Platform 8.1, a Java-based suite of server software. The company, which is fending off bitter competition from IBM and Oracle, is betting in large part on the WebLogic Workshop development tool, which it says is a radically more productive development tool, particularly for integrating existing systems.
IBM later this year will update its WebSphere Studio development tool with a feature called Java Server Faces, which makes it easier to tap into corporate data sources and build front-end interfaces. Also, IBM's Rational tools division is also assembling a product it said will enable rapid J2EE development through use of application modelling.
For its part, Oracle is planning enhancements to ease Java programming with its JDeveloper line with the forthcoming release of its Oracle 10g Application Server and database.
Not standing still
Just as Java tool makers plot their strategy, however, Microsoft is making a concerted attack on the J2EE stronghold of server-based applications. The company is hoping to win customers that build complex online reservation and manufacturing applications, for instance. Driving the adoption of Web services through its product line is central to Microsoft's server strategy.
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