Fwd of some thoughts on JAVA

["Peter B. Van Campen" <pbvanca@mcs.com>]

A friend sent this to me today:


He writes thus,


Herein lies an interesting perspective on the purity of Java, blatantly swiped
(by moi) from the IBM alphaWorks web site, and the "intervisions" archives.

http://www.alphaWorks.ibm.com/context/intervisions

Wine, Sewage and Java
- David Kaminsky, Java Team Lead, E-Network Studies, IBM

 When I was in high school, my trigonometry teacher
 posed an interesting pair of questions:

 What's an ounce of wine in a gallon of sewage? Sewage.
 What's an ounce of sewage in a gallon of wine? Still
 sewage.

 It turns out that this aphorism applies to Java. By now we
 all know that Java is an Internet-enabled programming
 language and associated run-time environment called the
 Java Virtual Machine or JVM. Since the JVM is now
 included with most web browsers, it is fairly pervasive.
 That means virtually all computers, regardless of
 operating system, can run all Java programs, hence the
 Java slogan: "write once, run anywhere."

 The key to the "write once, run anywhere" promise is the
 standardization of Java. If an application is to run
 anywhere, Java has to be the same everywhere.

 That's where the threat comes in: some vendors (one in
 particular) are attempting to add proprietary extensions
 to Java, or to link Java with their proprietary systems. As
 soon as a programmer uses a single non-standard,
 proprietary function, the application can only run on
 computers that support the function. For that application,
 Java's portability is lost -- the wine has turned to sewage.

 For the vendor who extended Java, that's the point. Such
 vendors want applications that run only their systems, so
 customers can buy only from them. For some players in
 the industry, competition is a bad thing.

 That's where the "100% Pure Java Initiative" comes in.
 Sun, IBM and other have created this program to
 encourage software developers to write portable - pure -
 Java programs. By using only pure Java, developers
 ensure that their applications will be portable. That's good
 for the developer because it increases the number of
 computers that can run his application. It's also good for
 customers because they don't get locked into a
 proprietary operating system. Remember: competition
 leads to lower prices.

 Using pure Java doesn't come without cost. Proprietary
 calls lure developers with the temptation of increased
 function or convenience; avoiding such calls might lead to
 slightly higher development costs, or slightly less function.

 To balance this temptation, customers must demand that
 software companies provide pure Java applications. If
 customers yield to the temptation of marginal function,
 developers will likely provide it at the expense of
 portability, and competition will be reduced. In the
 long-term, reduced competition leads to higher prices. If
 customers instead insist on portability, software vendors
 will be supply it -- or be driven out of business. So, the
 tradeoff is simple: short-term function vs. long-term cost.
 Today's software is bloated anyway, so who'll really miss
 the function?

 Java provides the industry - software companies and
 customer alike - an opportunity to create a true open
 computing environment where software is portable, and
 customers benefit from increase competition. Let's not
 sour the wine with a mere ounce of sewage.


Peter B. Van Campen
pbvanca@mcs.com   72701,1263  CI$
This work copyright Peter B. Van Campen. No portion of this work
shall be reproduced on the Microsoft Network in any form.

 "The most dementing of all modern sins is the inability
to distinguish excellence from success" - David Hare