In JavaOne 2008 I noticed something I least expected - an abundance of Mac laptops (Macbook, Macbook Pro & Macbook Air) in not just developers hands but also press / analysts and presenters. I didn't conduct a formal survey but anyone there can attest to the fact that around 60-70% of the laptops were Mac with Dell being a distant second. Obviously there must be good reasons for it. So I started asking the software developers. I found 5 good reasons for software developers to use a Mac laptop:

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I was amazed to find Microsoft design engineer Mugunthan Mugundan teaching Java (how to create REST output using Java) using Eclipse IDE. I found it rich in irony at many levels. What do you think?

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The burning question at JavaOne 2008 on lots of developers and businesses mind was how Sun was ever going to monetize all the cool technologies at JavaOne? If Sun goes down, so does the technologies it championed. I got the opportunity to ask the questions on the Java panel for media, to JavaFX lead and others.

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Sun revealed the following statistics about Java at JavaOne 2008:
1. 90% of Personal Computers on Internet have Java
2. 700, 000 JDK downloads per month
3. 48 Million JRE downloads per month

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I was intrigued by the fact that a new scripting language was designed for JavaFX, a new technology based on the Java platform, designed to enable consistent user experiences on desktop, mobile, TV, and other consumer platforms, where existing languages like Javascript or Groovy could be embraced and extended instead. A new language means a learning curve for a developer to get proficient at and also not be able to leverage the developer base of an existing popular language like Javascript or Gorrvy. I asked the question to the powers that be at Sun.

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The key features of Java EE 6 (Java Enterprise Edition version 6) are:
Modular Platform - Java EE 6 introduces profiles targeted for particular segment of users like web developers or mobile developers. Java Profiles allows you to select Java EE 6 features to be included in a profile. This allows creating smaller runtime with only the modules and extensions you need.

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All throughout the JavaOne 2008 keynote presentation, I had the same nagging question, how is Sun going to profit from all these diverse technologies? In the end I don't have an answer.

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JavaFX
The keynote was centered around JavaFX, Sun's solution for creating rich interactive internet applications with immersive user interface. Sun's value proposition is ubiquitousness of JavaFX on mobile platform and internet enabled devices.

Maybe I am lacking the big vision but I am missing one key element in this picture. Why develop in JavaFX scripts when you can create rich user interface already in Javascript (with AJAX) + any server side language?

In any case it is an extremely cool technology which was well demonstrated with the multiple simultaneous HD video rendering example. I only concern will be Sun's ability to convert people away from existing solutions.
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JavaOne 2008 is starting in couple of hours. I will be there all four days soaking in all the knowledge, fun and sharing about it in this blog.

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