| EUROPEAN INTERACTIVE DIRECTORIES |
WHAT IS JAVA ?
Java is a full-blown object-oriented programming language developed by Sun Microsystems Inc. Java
is an interpreted language. This means that in order for a Java program to run on a computer, a
run-time system (interpreter) will need to have been installed on the computer.
The Java interpreter can either exist inside other programs such as HotJava or Netscape Navigator 2.0,
or exist independently.
So why all the fuss about Java when there already exists powerful programming languages like C++, etc. ?
Because Java brings with it the capability of transforming the Internet from the static medium
that it has hitherto been, to a medium capable of delivering fully dynamic and interactive content.
The dynamism and interactivity is achieved by including links within an HTML page to Java programs
called applets. When the link is clicked on, the Java applet is transferred to your computer
and executed locally by the browser.
Java will therefore eliminate the need for a client computer on the Internet to depend on the host
computer for the execution of dynamic content.
Not only is Java poised to make the end user's life more interesting, but it also provides a
powerful programming environment for the software developer and Internet content provider.
The Internet is a highly heterogeneous networked environment encompassing dozens of operating
systems (Windows, Unix, Macintosh, OS/2, etc.,etc.) running on a wide variety of microprocessors.
A Java program once developed is capable of running on EVERY platform which has the Java interpreter.
The implication of this portability is quite profound to the Internet programmer. The programmer no
longer has to worry about developing different versions of an application to cater for the different
computer platforms in use across the Internet. By programming in Java, only one application will
need to be developed; it will then run on ALL platforms to which the Java interpreter is ported.
However, at the time of writing, the Java interpreter is only available for a limited number of
platforms.
These are:
- Unix: Sun Solaris 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 SPARC-based machines (Version 1.0 released 23 Jan 1996)
- Windows: Microsoft Windows NT and Windows 95 only (Version 1.0 released 23 Jan 1996)
- Macintosh System 7.5 (Beta 1 version released 13 Feb 1996)
- OS/2, AIX (Beta 1 versions released by IBM Corporation on 26 Jan 1996)
Much to the disappointment of millions of users worldwide, Sun Microsystems did not develop an
interpreter for the Windows 3.1x environment. The good news, however, is that on December 6 1995,
IBM Corporation announced that it had licensed the Java language and intended to port it to the
following platforms: OS/2, AIX, MVS, OS/400 and Windows 3.1x, starting the first quarter of 1996.
A press release from IBM on 08 Feb 1996 about progress on Java development for the Windows 3.1x environment said:
"The Win16 port is proceeding
pretty well. We have addressed the chief technical problems (threads and long file names) by use of
existing code and raw intelligence (!) and are progressing towards the stage of a complete
implementation of the JDK."
So things are definitely looking up for Windows 3.1x users !
Still in the true spirit of the Internet, it is only a matter of time before a lot of independent developers
will ensure that the Java interpreter is ported to practically all the platforms on the Internet
thereby completing the foundation to what is widely regarded as the second revolution of the Internet (
the first one being, of course, the advent of the WWW which was triggered off in 1990 by Tim Berners-Lee
at the European Centre for High Energy Physics [CERN] in Geneva, Switzerland, when he pioneered the
Hypertext Transport Protocol [HTTP] ).
Please send us email with your comments and details of any key Java sites.
