Java 6 and Scripting
Sun released Java 6 yesterday. Of particular interest (to me at least) is the explicit direct support for scripting languages as a "core" part of Java (more or less - of the Java 6 edition "package" at least...).
Though I intuitively understand it (and believe it), I've still yet to see a reasoned justification as to why we need scripting languages? Is the compiler that much a barrier to productivity?
Otherwise - some nice additions to Java 6 (especially the XML APIs, which, like E4X, are critical for easing web services development - nice), but despite them, I think Java 6 moves it further away from a credible client-side computing platform - too much increasing complexity, which creates distribution issues. I think Microsoft's mini-CLR is a better step in that direction. Open source and mobile/phone development may change that for Java, but I think a variety of factors will continue to impede relevance in that space.
Though I intuitively understand it (and believe it), I've still yet to see a reasoned justification as to why we need scripting languages? Is the compiler that much a barrier to productivity?
Otherwise - some nice additions to Java 6 (especially the XML APIs, which, like E4X, are critical for easing web services development - nice), but despite them, I think Java 6 moves it further away from a credible client-side computing platform - too much increasing complexity, which creates distribution issues. I think Microsoft's mini-CLR is a better step in that direction. Open source and mobile/phone development may change that for Java, but I think a variety of factors will continue to impede relevance in that space.
posted by Sree Kotay at 5:29 AM
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