Microsoft's compete/combat relationship with the Java programming language took yet another turn Monday as the vendor released Visual J# .NET, a tool that lets developers write in Java but target Microsoft's .Net framework. Microsoft has a long and winding history alternately supporting and subverting Java, from shipping robust development tools for the language to playing games with the Java virtual machine in its market-leading browser.
Visual J# .NET does a couple of things. It admits that Java is well-established as a popular programming language, along with alternatives such as C and even Microsoft's own emerging C# language. But it doesn't give an inch on the platform front, where the real battle is being waged, positioning Java as just another language that can be extended—mainly via Web services protocols—and tied into Microsoft's own .NET development framework.
|