The Rise and Fall of Java
Summary
TLDRJava, a programming language initially designed for a better TV remote, has become one of the most popular languages, powering everything from mobile apps to Mars rovers. Despite its decline on the web, Java's 'write once, run anywhere' philosophy ensures its continued relevance in Android apps and enterprise servers.
Takeaways
- π Java is a widely used programming language that has been popular for over 20 years.
- π§ Initially, Java was developed to create a better TV remote control, showing its humble beginnings.
- π‘ The Java Virtual Machine (JVM) allows Java to run on various processors by translating Java byte code, overcoming the limitations of compiled languages.
- π Java's 'Write Once, Run Anywhere' philosophy was a breakthrough, enabling cross-platform compatibility.
- π± The language was pivotal in the early days of the internet, powering interactive content through applets in web browsers.
- π Java's rise to fame was accelerated when Netscape Navigator decided to incorporate Java technology.
- π Despite its initial web success, Java's presence on the web has diminished due to security issues and the rise of JavaScript.
- π Java remains dominant in areas outside the web, including Android app development and enterprise solutions.
- π The story of Java exemplifies resilience and adaptability, as it transitioned from a TV remote project to a cornerstone of modern computing.
- π Java's impact is far-reaching, from powering Mars rovers to being a staple in educational and professional programming environments.
Q & A
What was the initial purpose of Java?
-Java was initially developed to build a better TV remote control for a project at Sun Microsystems, which aimed to integrate computers into consumer devices.
What is the JVM and how does it solve the problem of running code on different processors?
-The JVM, or Java Virtual Machine, acts like a processor designed to run Java bytecode. It allows the same programs to run on different types of processors by translating Java bytecode into machine code that the specific processor can understand.
Why was Java called 'Oak' during its early development?
-Java was initially called 'Oak' by James Gosling, named after a tree outside his office window. The name was changed to 'Java' later on because 'Oak' was already taken by another company.
What was the 'Star7' project and how does it relate to Java?
-The 'Star7' was a 5-inch tablet created by Sun Microsystems' Green Team. It was designed to act as a remote control with a graphical touchscreen interface and was the first device to use the language that would later become Java.
Why did Time Warner Cable choose SGI over Sun Microsystems for their interactive television system?
-Time Warner Cable opted for SGI's proposal over Sun Microsystems' because the concept of a network for cable television that Sun Microsystems proposed was considered too early for the market at that time.
How did the name 'Java' come to be chosen for the programming language?
-The name 'Java' was proposed by engineer Chris Warth who noticed it on his cup of Pete's Java during a brainstorming session. The team was looking for a name that was inviting, didn't reference the web or net, and was easy to say and spell.
What was the significance of Java being incorporated into Netscape Navigator?
-The incorporation of Java into Netscape Navigator, the world's most popular browser at the time, provided Java with a significant boost in visibility and adoption, as it became a standard for web-based interactive content.
Why did Java on the web decline and eventually become obsolete?
-Java on the web declined due to numerous security flaws and the slow response in patching them. Additionally, JavaScript, which was easier to develop with and gained more functionality over time, eventually replaced Java for web-based applications.
In what areas is Java still widely used today?
-Java is still widely used in Android app development, enterprise servers, and various professional applications where its speed and the large pool of developers familiar with the language are advantageous.
What does the phrase 'Write Once, Run Anywhere' mean in the context of Java?
-The phrase 'Write Once, Run Anywhere' refers to Java's ability to be written once and run on any device that has a JVM, regardless of the underlying hardware or operating system, due to its platform-independent nature.
Outlines
π The Origin and Evolution of Java
The paragraph discusses the history and development of Java, a programming language that has become incredibly popular since its inception over 20 years ago. It started as a project named Oak, initiated by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems, aiming to create a more advanced TV remote control. The language was designed to be platform-independent, running on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM), which allowed it to be used across various hardware. Despite its initial purpose being different, Java's adaptability made it suitable for a wide range of applications, from mobile apps to enterprise servers.
π Java's Rise to Fame and Web Dominance
This paragraph details Java's journey from an obscure project to a widely recognized programming language. The team at Sun Microsystems repurposed the language for the internet, creating a browser named HotJava that could run Java applets. Java's ability to run on any device with a compatible browser made it an instant hit, especially after Netscape Navigator decided to support it. The paragraph also highlights the challenges Java faced on the web, including security issues and competition from JavaScript, which eventually led to its decline in web development.
π± Java's Resilience and Continued Relevance
The final paragraph emphasizes Java's resilience and its ability to adapt to new technologies. Despite the decline in its use on the web, Java remains a dominant force in the world of programming, particularly in Android app development and enterprise solutions. The language's 'write once, run anywhere' philosophy has ensured its longevity and widespread use. The story of Java is portrayed as one of innovation, adaptability, and persistence, showing that even as technology evolves, Java continues to find its place.
Mindmap
Keywords
π‘Java
π‘Machine Code
π‘Compiler
π‘JVM (Java Virtual Machine)
π‘Bytecode
π‘Sun Microsystems
π‘Green Team
π‘Applets
π‘JavaScript
π‘Android
π‘Write Once, Run Anywhere (WORA)
Highlights
Java is a popular programming language that has been used in various applications from mobile apps to machines on other planets.
Java was originally developed to build a better TV remote control.
Computers process commands in machine code, which is a series of numbers associated with functions.
Early programming was tedious and prone to error due to the need to write in machine code.
Compilers were created to translate high-level languages into machine code, making programming more accessible.
Java introduced the JVM (Java Virtual Machine) to solve the problem of compatibility across different processors.
The JVM allows Java byte code to run on various processors, ensuring 'write once, run anywhere' capability.
Sun Microsystems, in the 1990s, aimed to integrate computers into consumer devices, leading to the creation of the Star7 tablet.
The Star7 tablet was designed to act as a remote control with a graphical touchscreen interface.
James Gosling created the Oak language, which later became Java, for the Star7 tablet.
Java was almost chosen for interactive television systems by Time Warner but was deemed too early.
The team behind Java realized its potential for the internet, leading to the development of the Web Runner browser.
Java's name was changed from Oak to avoid conflicts with an existing company, and 'Java' was chosen for its appeal and ease of use.
HotJava, the Java-based browser, allowed for interactive applets to be embedded in web pages.
Java gained significant attention at TED 6 when it demonstrated interactive content in a browser.
Java's popularity grew rapidly, with downloads increasing from single digits to thousands within months.
Netscape Navigator's decision to incorporate Java technology was a major boost for Java's adoption.
Java has been ported to billions of devices, from small tokens to Mars rovers, showcasing its versatility.
Despite its fall from grace on the web, Java remains one of the most popular programming languages for various applications.
Java's 'write once, run anywhere' philosophy made it ideal for Android app development.
Java's resilience and adaptability have kept it relevant despite the rise of JavaScript and other languages.
Transcripts
Java the language some people love some
people hate and some love to hate over
20 years since its introduction it's
risen to be one of the most popular
programming languages in current use
provided you download the latest updates
but would you believe it if I were to
tell you that this omnipresent language
the one that powers everything from apps
on your phone to machines on other
planets arose from a need to build a
better TV remote
perhaps the best place to start is just
explaining what exactly Java is it goes
a little something like this
computers at their core only process
commands in a program in what's known as
machine code basically a number is
associated with a function and when that
number is put into the CPU the CPU does
that operation
most of these operations are simple like
adding two numbers together or saving
data to memory now of course you could
write programs for the processor using
just machine code in fact in the early
days that's what people would do the
problem was that writing code is a
series of numbers for simple operations
was not only unintuitive requiring an
intimate knowledge of the hardware but
it was also really tedious for writing
anything other than small programs since
every function would need to be built
from the ground up as a result of this
it was highly prone to error
the solution from very early on was to
write a program called a compiler which
could generate the appropriate machine
code from a more english-like language
some compilers just assigned words for
each of the machine code functions so
programmers wouldn't need to remember
their specific numerical codes however
more advanced compilers began to include
more advanced compound functions into
their keywords forming some of the
modern languages used today like C plus
there is a catch with compiled languages
though you can't take code compiled for
One processor and run it on a different
one there is no Universal standard for
how CPU instructions are laid out
meaning that a program compiled for an
Intel processor wouldn't work on a power
PC processor nor would something written
for arm run on a 6502
Java offers a solution for this through
a program called the jvm or Java virtual
machine
the jvm acts like a processor designed
specifically to run Java byte code while
sitting on top of all sorts of different
processors that way even though the
processors on two computers are
different they can both run the same
programs the funny thing is you'd think
Java was developed specifically for this
purpose but in actuality was just an
afterthought from another project going
on at some Microsystems
Sun Microsystems was a company that had
it big in the 80s with their high-end
workstations however going into the 90s
Focus began to shift in the direction of
producing servers for the newly born web
with their success Sun pulled the Xerox
and a 1990 set up a team of 13 people
with the goal of finding what they
believed to be the next wave in
Computing
the green team as it was called focused
primarily on implementing computers into
other consumer devices very quickly
after starting they moved to a separate
office and over the course of 18 months
created a 5-inch tablet called the star
7. the star7 had everything in terms of
Hardware a 16-bit color touch screen
display pcmcia card slots Wireless
networking and more
naturally matching the team's vision of
computer integration and appliances a
system of different wirelessly
communicating devices specifically
television equipment was produced with
the star 7 acting as the heart
the star7 also acted as a remote control
with a graphical touchscreen interface
that even included an agent character
the neat trick that allowed the star7 to
work with so many devices was a new
language written for it by James Gosling
called Oak named after a tree outside
his office window
with a workable demo for their device
the Green Team moved to a larger office
and became first person intent on
becoming the underlying technology for
set-top boxes and video on demand
services in response to Time Warner
Cable's request for proposals for
interactive television systems first
person created the concept of a network
for cable television that would allow
individual users to write and read data
into the system
1992 though the idea was just too early
Time Warner opted for the proposal from
SGI instead
what first person had developed was
incredible but without a market their
new Computing concept was destined to
collect dust and be written up as old
boss the team had a meeting where they
and I quote had to figure out what to do
with this technology or what to do with
our lives
but after a few days of consideration
the team came to a realization actually
a pretty common one for tech companies
during the 90s why not the internet
and you know what it wasn't that bad of
an idea the entire concept of the star 7
system was to build a network centered
around multimedia and as web browsers
continued to evolve the World Wide Web
itself was beginning to become a network
centered around multimedia with
formatted text pictures sound and
eventually even video why not add
interactive content to the list the Real
Genius of this idea though is that Oak
had already solved the largest problem
with this plan
normally since the internet is populated
with computers of all sorts of different
architectures operating systems and
browsers any web-based program would
need to be released in different
versions to support all of them lest it
be inaccessible to certain people with
Oak though the website would only need
to include one version of the program
and as long as you used a browser that
supported Oak you could run the program
and so in 1994 the team got to work on
making their own oak-based browser
called Web Runner well actually they
didn't call it Oak anymore since the
name was already taken by Oak
Technologies so after the lengthy
process of trying to find a name that
sounded inviting didn't reference the
web or net and was easy to say in spell
the team finally settled on Java
actually Legend has it that the name
Java was originally proposed by engineer
Chris worth who read it off his cup of
Pete's Java while trying to recover from
a hacking Marathon session while riding
the web running browser Web Runner soon
renamed to hot Java so as to match the
caffeinated language it was written on
was an entire Mosaic clone with the
added bonus of being able to run little
Java programs embedded in a page called
applets the next year John Gage caught
Gosling by surprise Gage had been
invited to present at the Ted 6 talk in
Monterey to a group of entertainment and
internet professionals and wanted to
demonstrate the not yet finished hot
Java browser Panic ensued over the still
rough program crashing at its first
public demonstration but fortunately
that wasn't the case at first the
audience appeared to have little
interest in watching a clone of an
existing browser but the moment that
something in a browser window moved Gage
had everyone's attention
you have to remember that at the time
the web was nothing but static Pages
static images and to see something even
as simple as Lines Moving and
automatically sorting themselves right
in a browser window was unheard of
the demo worked flawlessly and the
crowd's Applause indicated that Java
hype was sure to grow
after a few private demos Java was ready
to be released to the world and in March
of 1995 the team set up a public
download they watched as the number of
downloads increased from single digits
to a few dozens James garzling had set
the threshold for Success at 10 000
downloads and within a few months sooner
than anyone had expected it download 10
000 had happened thanks in part to being
a front page news story the popularity
of java was growing so large that the
team was constantly scrambling for more
bandwidth to handle the number of
downloads they needed to serve the
moment the Java team knew they had made
it though was that that Year's Sun World
Conference Java had been chosen as an
item to mention in the keynote speech
but what few had known was that Marca
Andresen the creator of the Mosaic
browser and founder of Netscape had
agreed to incorporate Java technology
into Netscape Navigator Andreessen
walking on the stage was a surprise for
nearly everyone in the room but for Java
now with the backing of the world's most
popular browser one with a history of
establishing standards the future looked
bright since that day the jvm has been
ported to billions of devices from tiny
little Rings given out of the Java 1
conference in 1998 to the two Mars
rovers Spirit an opportunity in 2004 the
same language that let the world watch
Gary Kasparov loose to deep blue live in
their web browser Powers Enterprise
servers and mobile phones alike yes it
seems that the right ones Run Anywhere
philosophy of java has grown to mean
literally anywhere
but wait I hear you cry the
it's called the rise and fall of java
is still really used in all those things
and still ranks is one of the most
popular programming languages in the
world is it really Fallen to that I
answer no not in the slightest
well actually no for pretty much all
areas except for the platform that
brought it notoriety to begin with the
internet ironically enough Java on the
web is basically dead with the most
popular browsers no longer supporting it
in favor of a different little language
called JavaScript
JavaScript JavaScript isn't that the
same as Java though despite the fact
that an effort was made to make the
syntax look similar between the two
languages both are fundamentally
different under the hood JavaScript
Harkens all the way back to 1995. the
same year that Mark Andreessen of
Netscape had officially announced the
browser's support of java the original
idea was to create a companion scripting
language named mocha to continue the
whole coffee thing that will work
alongside Java applets JavaScript was
intended to be an easier to learn
scripting language for simple
interactivity in a web browser while
Java was intended to be the professional
language for larger development projects
as it turned out though between the
numerous security flaws in Java with
patching coming too little too late and
the relative ease of development in
JavaScript after a bumpy road with
competing standards and implementations
of the language JavaScript would end up
gaining greater functionality to the
point where it was able to supplant Java
entirely
Java may not exist on the web anymore
but if it's still the top ranked
language in the world then it must be
somewhere right look no further than the
nearest Android device
unlike iPhones which are produced solely
by Apple devices from all sorts of
different companies running on all sorts
of different Hardware on Android making
Java with its right ones Run Anywhere
philosophy a perfect candidate for
writing apps Java can also be found in
plenty of professional and Enterprise
applications simply for its speed and
the number of people who know it
popularity wise Java may have seen some
better days and despite some valid
criticisms it's not likely to be going
anywhere Java may not run the web
anymore but get one stid but it
certainly hasn't died like flash has
either the story of java is one of
resilience and adaptability the same
language originally designed to build a
better TV remote managed to evolve into
the one that brought interactive content
to the web and when weeded out of that
space moved on to be the basis for
nearly every app available today if
that's not adaptability I don't know
what is
[Music]
thank you
[Music]
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