The SquizLog

Java EE 6: Don't Hold Your Breath

Yesterday the Java EE 6 proposal was published. Rod Johnson, founder of the Spring Framework, thinks it's a step in the right direction (via InfoQ). I agree that it is a refreshing change in thinking.

As Rod also notes, Java EE has been challenged by Ruby on Rails. Reports from the recent Rails conference in Portland, Oregon have indicated that a significant proportion of attendees were from "enterprise" organisations. ThoughtWorks is using Ruby for 40% of new business this year in the US. Here in Australia there is a vibrant and growing Rails community.

I support Sun for taking steps to reduce the bloat in Java EE and to be more inclusive of open source innovation. But will Java EE 6 be delivered and supported soon enough? If the specification is finalised according to the proposed schedule (Q4, 2008) we can expect vendors to support Java EE 6 in 2009 at the earliest. Meanwhile most users are still stuck on J2EE 1.4 because they are waiting for their vendor to catch up to Java EE 5.

Thank goodness for open source. I'll be focussing on Rails and Spring rather than holding my breath waiting for Java EE 6.

Posted to Java, Rails by Keith Pitty