Sun readies Java development initiative

Sun Microsystems plans to announce an effort to boost Java tools standards development and interaction.

Sun Microsystems plans to announce an effort to boost Java tools standards development and interaction.

A Sun representative said the effort pertained to a Java tools community, albeit one that would not be a competitor to the IBM-led Eclipse initiative. Sun officials declined further comment.

Analyst Rikki Kirzner, research director at IDC, said that based on research she has done, she expects Sun to provide details on an effort to boost interoperability between interactive development environments based on Java, in the wake of Sun's decision not to participate in Eclipse.

"The high-level purpose of this is to try to eliminate the fragmentation in the Java tools market so that people can get their tools to interoperate better," Kirzner said. It has been difficult to move from one Java IDE to another, she said.

"Eclipse did solve the problem, but Sun never joined it," she said.

Success of the effort will depend on which companies are participating, Kirzner said.

BEA Systems, while declining to comment on specific details of the announcement, said Monday that it would agree to be interviewed about the plan on Tuesday. Many vendors are involved in the initiative, BEA acknowledged.