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10 Reasons We Need Java 3
An anonymous reader writes "This article on O'Reilly Network (written by one of the most active Java book writers ever, Elliotte Rusty Harold) has some interesting points about the need for a new 'cleaned up' Java version, made to incorporate the advances in the last 7 years of its life and without the requirement to keep compatibility with old versions."
Betcha this one's a VB coder!
C# and CLR
- Virtual Machine
- Language Specification
- Supporting Libraries
The biggest problem with all of these is that Sun alone owns the spec. I doubt it would be possible for highly motivated individuals to try and "fix" any of these items (as in Open Source project) without Sun legal getting their undies in a knot. Sun at minimum shot themselves in the foot by not submitting all of the pieces that make up Java to ECMA or another recognized standards body. Like it or not, this is where M$ will pull ahead with C# and CLR - even though they are everyone's favorite Evil Corporation.Anyone who has taken a deep look at the the JVM has to question its design (exercise left to the reader). It's interesting to see how the JVM's CISC-like, non-orthogonal instruction set has been perpetuated by one of the leading RISC vendors (perhaps it's not really RISC anymore these days).
The language itself has lots of holes - realizing of course that nothing is perfect. Primitives in Java are messy at best. I hate having a million get() and set() methods to follow the supposed JavaBean "pattern". Why not support something like Properties in C#? Generics? Coming Real Soon Now. Unfortunately the bureaucracy and lack of timeliness in the JCP leaves someting to be desired. A quick reminder: How long did it take to get simple assertions added?
I could easily get over some of the bumps in the JVM and language spec if the standard and extended libraries had some god's-eye view design applied to them. No one but Sun can touch the java.* packages, and javax.* is under their thumb as well.
What rocket scientist thought of java.awt.List and java.util.List? (perhaps no one at Sun ever works with Collections and GUIs at the same time). java.net.URL is a first class citizen, while URLs in other places (such as JDBC connections) are simply Strings. Sure, these are minor details, but they reflect a lack of maturity at many levels - and as they say, the devil is in the details. I won't even go into the monster that is EJB, since that to me is a lesson in how to make the simple very complex.
Bottom line is this: Java has its flaws, many of which can be lived with. But Sun having a stranglehold on the spec is a serious deterrent for anyone (beyond Sun) to step up to plate and make a difference. It's quite sad, since Java is the least of many evils out there in terms of building software in general, and I would love to see it mature well and eventually succeed.
So, anyone want to redo this the right way, free of Sun's shadow?
You're correct, of course. I was overreacting in my post. C++ templates are one way to do generic programming. The guy managed to string a bunch of loosely related buzzwords together in a nonsense paragraph -- CLOS, Dylan, multi-dispatch, generic functions, templates, generic programming, and C++. I gladly took his bait, picked a few of the charged up words he so kindly provided, and started frothing at the mouth.
I could talk for rant for days and days about generic programming. Heck, I could rant for days about just about any of the topics JTDUBS has provided for us. I wouldn't make any sense during any of the rantings, especially when constrained to the limitations of a forum like slashdot. I'm pretty sure that's exactly what JTDUBS had in mind, too. Either that, or he really is a clueless wank. With the best-crafted trolls, it's almost impossible to tell the difference.
Slashdot is jumping the shark. I'm just driving the boat.