[plug] Time & Task Management Tool

[Oliver White]

John Summerfield wrote:

> > Andrew McMeikan wrote:
> > >
> > > Hi Trev,
> > >         Ok, so you don't like Java, I tend to think its a nice way of
> > > having the same app over diverse machines,  Java-script can probably do
> > > enough client side validation if thats more to your liking.  If you want
> >
> > No no no. I can see how one binary working on multi-platforms is great!
> > (That's one of the reasons I primarily code in Perl!) Just on the
> > practicality side I've had apps crashes, and on the coding side, I
> > didn't get into it, and couldn't see many advantages...
> >
> > So, I'm still waiting for someone to tell me how wonderful Java is for
> > writing code. Or do I have to pass an initiation and swear oaths before
> > I can be part of the Java movement. ^_^
>
> Java is on more platforms. While I can get perl for OS/2 and winders for
> example, they don't ship with perl. However, java's in every more-or-less
> current browser.
>
> Java runs on the client machine: data needn't be formatted with all that
> html, and web pages using java can result in reduced bandwidth.
>
> Java runs on the client machine. It can do preliminary data validation
> (Did you REALLY work 25 hours last Sunday?) before sending it off to the
> host.
>
> Java can produce applications (not just applets) with a MUCH nicer user
> interface than perl can.
>
> Java is MUCH better at drawing charts than perl is.

Also of note, with portable binaries, you can have 'mobile agents' in a
hetrogenious environment. These are little pieces of code that can travel from
machine to machine and perform some actions. Java is not prone to any viruses
as of writing, so this is an interesting advantage. However, the need for a
robust/compatible Java Virtual Machine (JVM) at the host is the real problem.
If everone took it upon themselves to download the 20 odd megabytes of the
Java2 JVM, we would have a very useful infrastructure. It may happen yet, but
with Sun's (perhaps nessesary) tight enforcement of their technology, this is a
long way comming. The technology itself, however, is facinating.

--
Oliver White