I find it really bizarre that we're actually debating whether Mac Java
development is important *on a Mac Java development list*. I might as
well go over to the Core Audio list and tell people no one really uses
sound.
But I just want to point out that Azureus and Eclipse are not the only
Java applications out there; that's absurd.
There are various desktop apps that are important to Mac users, for
starters, with things like FreeMind, ThinkingRock, etc. Many of these
don't have a reputation as Java applications because people don't --
and shouldn't -- really notice or care.
Lots and lots of websites deploy rich client apps or web applets (the
applets themselves also impacted by desktop Java updates and JDK
improvements). And it's a fair bet to assume this number will
increase, not decrease. The growing competition from Microsoft
(Silverlight, etc.) and Adobe (AIR/Flex/Flash) indicates growing
demand for these kind of rich applications. It's also getting
increasingly possible to build apps combining Flex and Java, something
we're evaluating for our use. Even given our complaints, the fact is
that nearly everyone -- Mac users included -- has at least Java 1.4,
and increasingly Java 5. I can see from my site analytics, in fact,
that Java is on nearly 100% of client machines, and most often a
recent version -- sometimes more recent than Flash. (Silverlight,
meanwhile, for all its hype just doesn't seem to be out there, which
means a huge chicken and egg problem for Microsoft, not Sun and the
Java community.)
The other message here, in case you missed it: it's still not just the
browser and JavaScript. Java is key to the Mac's cross-platform
compatibility in a Web that will increasingly be dominated by rich
client applications.
Oh, and there's the fact that Java is the most popular programming
language on the planet. And it's the most popular language taught in
schools. And the education market is critical to Apple.
And there's game development (jMonkeyEngine, which is terrific to work
with, open source, and just hit 1.0), OpenGL development, and 3D art.
Java, for all its flaws, is the best option for those of us interested
in cross-platform code for creative music and visuals. A huge amount
of research has been done in everything from virtual environments to
music composition.
There's an increasingly-popular open source framework aimed at
artists, students, and people doing data visualization called
Processing (see processing.org). My heart's close to that one as I use
it in my art and teach it to students. It's just now targeting Java 5,
as it's very conservative about compatibility, but I use it under Java
6 on Windows and Linux, and if we had better Mac Java 6 support that
might be another matter. It's also crippled by problems with QuickTime
for Java and Mac JavaSound support, things Apple could address. The
result: thousands of students and artists around the world have their
art crippled, because their tools don't work right or don't work
predictably. And as someone who loves the Mac as a creative tool,
that's obviously the opposite of what you want. Forget pointing
fingers at Apple or Sun; it's just something that someone should fix.
Most importantly, all of this stuff runs on the Mac. Java 6 is not
necessarily relevant to all of them, but it does offer nice features
for many of them, and overall, Java support itself is really, really
important.
So, sorry for the long message. But obviously there's a serious
communication problem if ** even Java developers ** don't understand
how important Java is as a tool. And then it becomes a self-fulfilling
prophecy, because you just let Java rust and break, or you ignore the
desktop needs. And I think we'd miss out on a huge opportunity if that
happened.
So, yes, Apple, I want to see some increased support and
communication. If Apple supporting Java really isn't the best path
(and it may not be), then take the steps necessary to make OpenJDK
community support feasible. And don't forget things like JavaSound
that cripple the Mac and, because the Mac is so important to Java, the
entire Java platform. Those people aren't going to go to native Mac
tools. They'll just give up.
Peter Kirn
http://createdigitalmotion.comhttp://createdigitalmusic.com
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