Sun steps up with JavaFX: a Silverlight and Flash killer

By Microsoft Subnet on Thu, 12/04/08 - 5:01pm.

Sun Microsystems has turned up the competitive heat on rich Internet application (RIA) development platforms Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight. Today it released JavaFX 1.0. For .Net developers wanting to go over to the dark side of Java, this could the platform that convinces you to try.

Some in the Java community believe JavaFX could become "the application environment for the Java platform," while others say Sun has made nothing but mistakes on the client side, and JFX is too little, too late. On the other hand, Adobe isn't too healthy either these days. Yesterday, the company announced that it would be cutting 600 jobs -- about 8% of its workforce. Sun, too, has been in a dire financial condition for what seems like forever. It announced last month that it would be cutting 15%-18% of its workforce after reporting a stunning $1.7 billion quarterly loss.

That leaves Microsoft as the only financially healthy competitor in this three-way battle for the next generation rich client/development platform.

But then again, you can never (ever) count Sun out. In this podcast with Sun Microsystems Senior Director of Java Marketing Param Singh, and JavaFX Architect John Burkey, Andrew Glover addresses both the concerns associated with JavaFX 1.0 and its potential. Get the developer's perspective on what you'll be able to do with JavaFX 1.0. Also hear Sun's answer to the question: What does JavaFX 1.0 mean for Swing?

Listen:

Interested? Check out our sister site Javaworld.com

Visit the Microsoft Subnet web site for more news, blogs, podcasts. Also see:

Microsoft patents ... a mere 146 issued so far in November
Advocate says IPv6 will reduce global energy usage
10 questions for Small Business Server/Essential Business Server guy, Russ Madlener
7 Keys to cleaning up Windows with Windows 7
17 job-hunting resources for Windows pros
Glenn Weadock on Windows Server 2008
Library of Windows management tools from A Better Windows World
Subscribe to all Microsoft Subnet bloggers.
Sign up for the bi-weekly Microsoft newsletter. (Click on News/Microsoft News Alert.)