Headlines about Sun this week start with the preliminary earnings
announcements and the agreements with Microsoft [12706] and [12707].
The Sun JavaTM Studio Creator early access is now available [12678].
Wal-Mart will sell Microtel computers at very low prices running the
Sun JavaTM Desktop System [12689].
Industry Sections this Week
Telco: Featuring a solution from Sun, Highdeal Transactive and
Steleus that uses OSS through JavaTM APIs to prevent mobile networks
from revenue incurring losses [12653].
Life Sciences: To help in the fight against cancer, the Japanese
National Institute of Radiological Sciences will use a solution from Sun
and Rosetta Biosoftware [12448].
In other sections:
Developer-related features of Sun JavaTM System Application Server,
Platform Edition 8 [12652]
Online seminars on JavaTM 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EETM)
[12646] and on Data Center innovation [12679]
Texas Instruments to boost performance of transistors with 65 nm
technology [12635]
More gaming news in the Java Technology section
Version 4.4 of Sun StorEdgeTM Traffic Manager software released
[12599]
Sun entered into a broad collaboration arrangement with Microsoft to
enable their products to work better together and to settle all pending
litigation between them. The companies have also entered into
agreements on patents and other issues.
Sun is undergoing restructuring that will result in a workforce
reduction of approximately 3,300 people. The company released
preliminary third quarter revenues of approximately $2.65 billion.
Sun's Jonathan Schwartz has also received a promotion to the position
of President and Chief Operating Officer.
Developers are sufficiently excited about the early access release of
the Sun Java Studio Creator application development tool that more
than 10,000 have signed up for it.
The combination of the Solaris Operating System (Solaris OS) (x86
Platform Edition) and Sun's new x86 server offerings has attracted a
variety of customers to Sun IT infrastructure: AutoTrader.com, Delaware
Biotechnology Institute, Postini, Ladbrokes.com, the San Diego
Supercomputer Center and the Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular
Biology at the University of Leeds are among the latest customers to
adopt Sun solutions.
MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM), the interactive media and Internet company
of Major League Baseball, contracted Sun to create a state-of-the-art
data center based on Sun's servers, storage systems, Digital Asset
Management Reference Architecture and the Sun Java Enterprise
System. Sun Services' architectural plan will have the data center
ready for the 2004 baseball season.
Sun has contracted with Denali Software Inc. to use the Denali PureSpec
verification IP to model, simulate and verify the interface between the
next generation Sun chips and other PCI Express compliant devices. The
result for Sun will be detection of interoperability bugs early in the
development cycle and faster time-to-market with a higher quality
product.
Sun will use National Semiconductor's new high-performance,
mixed-signal networking chip in its GigaSwift Ethernet product line.
The chip integrates National's Gigabit Ethernet physical layer, its
GigPHYTER core and Sun's Gigabit Ethernet controller. The result:
enhanced performance, reduced power consumption and system cost.
The 2004 Digital Consulting Inc.(DCI) 2004 Portal Excellence Award was
given to Sun and AXA Financial for the design and deployment of AXA
Financial's multi-portal initiative using the Sun Java System
Portal Server.
The first two specifications in the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)'s
Speech Interface Framework have been approved. VoiceXML 2.0 and Speech
Recognition Grammar Specification (SRGS) 1.0 will allow telephone
interaction with Web Services via key pads, spoken commands, listening
to pre-recorded speech, synthetic speech and music.
The W3C documents on VoiceXML 2.0 and the Speech Recognition Grammar
Specification (SRGS) are available online. They provide details on
background, concepts and use.
Sun and IFS Defense are allied in providing an advanced logistics
platform of software and hardware to aerospace and defense
organizations such as Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems. The solution includes
fully integrated business and asset management modules that support the
complex configuration management and maintenance requirements found
within air, land and sea environments.
Bahwan CyberTek (BCT) will be part of Sun's new iForce collaboration in
supporting Oracle's e-Business suite in the Middle East. BCT will
leverage Sun's server technology along with Oracle's e-Business suite
special and enterprise edition expertise to develop its enterprise
operations and Web Services. Tech Access will test all products.
Leapstone Systems has extended its agreement to provide the
Leapstone Communications Convergence Engine (CCE) as part of the Sun
iForce Solution for Telecommunications Service Delivery. Now
Leapstone will also furnish specialized professional services for Sun's
end-to-end telecom service delivery solution for both content and
network services.
The Employee Life-Cycle Management (ELCM) solution, a joint effort of
Sun and Deloitte & Touche LLP, is now available to help companies
optimize their human resources management systems, chiefly by enabling
the secure, centralized management of employee access to critical
services. The solution combines Deloitte & Touche's i-MAAP identity
management program with the Sun identity management offering.
The Sun Java Desktop System, which comes preloaded on Microtel
Computer Systems hardware, is currently available for purchase at the
discount retailer Wal-Mart. Sun expects to benefit from the Sun Java System
product's new position in front of the broad consumer market and now
considers Wal-Mart to be the PC supplier for the company.
A Sun article on the Sun Java System Application Server, Platform
Edition 8 provides a comprehensive summary of the product and its
features. The solution is free for development, deployment and
distribution, and provides a range of Java 2 Platform, Enterprise
Edition (J2EE) 1.4 updates in addition to fully integrated and enhanced
tools and technologies.
The JBoost solution from Ivis Technologies allows Sun Java Studio
developers to take advantage of reusable software assets, which allows
them to concentrate on business logic instead of redundant programming
tasks. As a result, JBoost has become a part of the Sun Java Studio Partner
Program.
A white paper on the benefits of Sun Java System Communications
software over Microsoft Exchange lists the components of the software
and its advantages over the Microsoft Exchange 5.5. By using the Sun
software instead, the white paper asserts, management will see cost
savings, employees will have more uptime and a familiar user
experience and administrators will appreciate the simplicity of the
software.
Sun recently rebranded the Sun Open Net Environment software products as Sun Java System. This is a third list of products rebranded. See articles [12178] and [12181] for prior product information. Continue to check upcoming issues as future products are rebranded.
Two tech tips on the Sun Java System Portal Server are available
online: One on how to create a nested tab container on the portal with
portal server; and another on how to extend the
JSPTableContainerProvider class of portal server and support one more
layout on the portal.
A new 65 nanometer (nm) semiconductor manufacturing process technology
from Texas Instruments (TI) is expected to shrink equivalent 90nm
designs by half and boost transistor performance 40 percent. TI plans
to manufacture chips using the process in 2005.
A new 19-inch LCD monitor from Sun is replacing the 18-inch LCD
monitor. It offers 1280x1024 resolution, and a 5:4 aspect ratio to
provide one of the highest quality flat panel monitors available today
for demanding visual applications.
Sun is offering miscellaneous hardware spare parts on the Sun Fire
V60x servers, Sun Fire V65x servers and the Sun Blade 2500 workstations. Sun
hardware spares come with a
one year warranty. Any design improvements made to these parts have
been incorporated by Sun engineering and undergone factory testing to
maximize interoperable compatibility.
John VanSant of Sun and Todd Mann of H&W present a free
two-part Web seminar series on optimizing Java 2 Platform,
Enterprise Edition (J2EE) applications. The seminars are geared
toward developers, designers and architects using the Java
programming language. The dates are April 6 and June 22.
Join Sun Enterprise systems executives at an upcoming eSeminar
addressing solutions for improving data center performance. This
eSeminar will take a comprehensive look at Sun's new multi-threaded
throughput computing systems. Register now and receive an exclusive CD
containing a comprehensive library of Sun BluePrints books and
articles.
The Desktop Linux Summit 2004 focuses exclusively on issues of Linux on
the Desktop and the companies that sell, market or promote Desktop
Linux-based products, services, applications and technologies. The
summit will be held April 22 and 23 in San Diego, California.
Sun has enhanced both its Sun StorEdge S1 array and the Sun
StorEdge D240 media tray with a new SCSI 146 GB 10K rpm HDD
configuration. The new configurations offer the Sun StorEdge S1 array
up to 438 GB of storage capacity and the Sun StorEdge D240 media tray
up to 584 GB through their respective hot swap drive bays.
Sun is enhancing its SAN offerings with the following: Sun StorEdge
9900 series load balancing support with new performance enhancing
algorithm, FCIP support with JNI HBAs and more.
End users needing to connect Sun StorEdge disk arrays and/or disk
systems in a SAN to Red Hat Linux, Microsoft Windows, HP-UX and/or IBM
AIX operating environments will welcome the release of Sun StorEdge
Traffic Manager software version 4.4, which supports multi-pathing
failover/fail back and load balancing on all those environments.
VERITAS has localized its popular NetBackup 4.5 Feature Pack 6 (FP6) in
Japanese. The version contains all the features and functions of the FP6
version in English. Documentation in Japanese is also included.
The recent release of the Sun Java System Application Server,
Platform Edition 8 comes with
numerous developer tools and deployment methods. As the first
compatible implementation of the Java 2 Platform, Enterprise
Edition (J2EE) 1.4 specification, this updated server provides the
foundation for delivering enterprise-class application services and Web
Services.
The latest tech tips on the Core Java Technologies Web site address
customizing JFileChooser and best practices in exception handling, both
of which were developed using Java 2 SDK, Standard Edition, v 1.4.2
and written by John Zukowski, president of JZ Ventures, Inc.
Sun Java Studio Enterprise is a unified platform of tools, support
and developer services for developing applications in a productive
environment. A subscription provides developers with online technical
support, a community forum and interactive Webinars and chats -- two coming up in April.
"Enterprise Java Security"
Creating a Secure Enterprise Infrastructure Made Up of Java Technology-based Enterprise Applications
The new book, "Enterprise Java Security," is designed to be a
comprehensive guide to Java technology security. It focuses on the applicability of Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition (J2SE) and
Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) security
technologies in creating a secure enterprise infrastructure that is
mainly made up of Java technology-based enterprise applications.
"Hardcore Java"
For Intermediate-level Java Technology Programmers Interested in Becoming Gurus
Robert Simmons' new book aims to address the lack of quality titles that
are able to raise an intermediate-level Java technology programmer
to the status of guru. Not for the beginner, "Hardcore Java" offers
readers insight into those secrets of Java technology programming that
are both difficult and rarely understood.
Developers, programmers, administrators and system architects wanting a
complete handbook on WebLogic should take note of "WebLogic: The
Definitive Guide." Authors Jon Mountjoy and Avinash Chugh provide an
in-depth look at WebLogic versions 7 and 8.1 supplying a useful tool
for developing and managing applications.
A new book by Keith W. Ross aims to demonstrate the changes quickly
occurring in the field of networking, and offer a top-down approach to
the subject. The third edition of "Computer Networking: A Top-Down
Approach Featuring the Internet" features updates on wireless and mobility.
There will not soon be an open-source version of Java technology
despite the entreaties of Eric Raymond, president of the Open Source
Initiative, and Rod Smith, IBM's VP for emerging technologies, both of
whose open letters failed to persuade Scott McNealy, president, CEO and
chairman of Sun, that such a move was in the best interests
of the Java programming language.
IGN/GameSpy has extended its market reach by adding Java
technology-based platforms to the several platforms its gaming products
already support. With its revised IGN/GameSpy software development
kits, the vendor now allows Java programming language developers to
integrate the company's "Powered by GameSpy" technology into their
titles.
Ever since the release at the 2003 JavaOne Conference of several
new application programming interfaces (APIs), Sun has continued to
refine these solutions that address three essential game features: 3-D
graphics, audio and input devices.
The Mobile Information Device Profile (MIDP), the Java runtime
environment for phones, entry-level PDAs and other similar mobile
information devices, has a number of new features that make for easier
game development.
New Media Age recently reported on the BBC's efforts to enhance the
television viewing experience by enabling audience interaction with
programming through a Java technology-enabled mobile phone.
Meta Group foresees fierce competition between Java technology and
.Net over the next couple of years, reports Robert Jaques for VNUNet.com.
Even though a number of companies have selected Java technology as
their platform for enterprise development, Meta Group sees a slowdown
in the rate of future Java technology adoptions because of the
complexity issues that will be heightened by the competition itself.
A recent article by Karen Dearne from News Interactive discusses the
movement towards network computing with Sun's chief security officer
Whitfield Diffie. In the article, Diffie explains how computers will
soon seek out specialized support on their own, through a sort of
network subcontracting system.
Liberty Alliance has successfully completed two projects based on their
Identity Web Services Framework (ID-WSF). The Liberty Identity Web
Services Framework is part of Liberty's Phase 2 specifications, and is
now being used as the basic architecture for unique new identity-based
services.
The Enterprise Security Assessment and Best Practices course is
designed to give students the knowledge and
tools necessary to conduct a security review and create
a vulnerability and risk assessment report.
Prevent mobile networks from revenue leakage with a solution from Sun,
Highdeal Transactive and Steleus. The solution uses OSS through
Java APIs and integrates Sun Java Enterprise System, Highdeal
Transactive rating engine and Steleus GPRS monitoring technology for
continuous monitoring of the mobile data network with real-time alerts
if faults, revenue loss or quality problems are detected.
Network architects and administrators responsible for designing optimal
backbone and distribution IP network architectures in data center
networks may have use for the Sun BluePrints Online article,
"Understanding Tuning TCP." Author Deepak Kakadia delves into key
Transport Control Protocol (TCP) tunable parameters related to
performance tuning.
Mobile phone users in Europe and Japan are much more likely than
those in the U.S. to use their phones for more than just conversation.
Arik Hesseldahl sees Mforma playing a large role in adjusting the balance
toward more varied mobile phone use in the U.S.
Sun Fire enterprise servers, Sun StorEdge technology and the
Rosetta Resolver system are helping researchers at the National
Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS) in Chiba, Japan, analyze the
data from the human genome.
Sun and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid
Tropics (ICRISAT) have signed a memorandum of understanding to create
a Center of Excellence (COE) for e-learning under the auspices of the
Virtual Academy for the Semi-Arid Tropics (VASAT).
The Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) Data Center at
Dartmouth College maintains a repository of image files of use to
neuroscientists. The files are accessed and shared, creating a need for a
storage solution that can grow as the archive needs grow. The center
turned to Sun and StorageTek.
Dr. Stefan Unger, business development manager, computational biology
in global education and research, science and engineering at Sun,
praised the reliability of Sun technology and how it can help Malaysian
biologists avoid the difficulties that have beset other adopters of
Linux clusters.
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