Before I get into what’s new with Java, I have a quick question for you.

First, let me say that Google is a great tool for finding information. I use it and Yahoo! all the time to learn, research, explore, and so on. But if Google (and other applicable search sites) are so great, why have so many people, including myself, begun to use Wikipedia.org as their starting point for information retrieval?

I know why I use it: it provides a nice landing page of information when I do a search--a predictable, useful, safe, landing page. I don’t get a list of results for my request, as I do with Google, where I have to decide further which one to click on, and which ones to just plain avoid. Instead, I get one commonly formatted result with lots of information on the subject at hand; including pictures (most of the time), links to other web sites for further reading, and links to related Wikipedia entries. Take a look at the Wikipedia entry for Java, for example. It’s a great starting point for anyone who wants to begin learning about Java.

Furthermore, the breadth of topics covered, and the depth of information is pretty good. Yes, I know that the entries are susceptible to error and even vandalism. But there’s no guarantee that the first result you click on from a Google search is going to yield accurate information, either.

Again, I love Google and Yahoo! and I use them both countless times every day. However, it’s ironic that after Google changed the way the world uses the Web, an encyclopedia (or at least the 21st century version of one) can still be the best starting point for learning in many cases. If you agree or disagree with this observation, please post your opinion at the bottom of this blog entry, or email me (eric@ericbruno.com).

Apache Derby 10.1.3.1

Derby is an open-source relational database available from Apache. (Also see "Java, SQL, Cloudscape, and Derby" by Ken North.) It’s also the basis for Java DB, which is the database that Sun delivers as part of Java EE 5. Apache Derby version 10.1.3.1 was recently released with the following changes:

• Critical fixes for Network Client when used with a transaction manager (XA)
• A critical data integrity fix when running with IBM J2RE 1.5.0 SR2.
• Improved Network Server stability and reliability
• Improved memory usage for the Network Client
• Improved query performance for UNION queries and subqueries
• Better handling of text encoding on systems with non-ASCII native encoding
• More reliable behavior of scrollable insensitive result sets
• Updated documentation
• A new distribution that includes line number information, lib-debug, has been added to assist in filing and tracking down Derby issues
• Many important fixes to correct issues with data integrity, correct memory leaks and address other product defects

Derby 10.1.3.1 can be downloaded at:
http://db.apache.org/derby/releases/release-10.1.3.1.cgi

Solaris Enterprise System

Sun offers an alternative to doing Java development on Windows and even Linux with the Solaris Enterprise System. With it, you get Solaris 10 (with DTrace for advanced debugging), Sun Java Enterprise System (with everything you need to host and manage your Java software), and integrated development tools (NetBeans, Sun Java Studio Creator, Sun Java Studio Enterprise, and Sun Studio for C++ and Fortran). Actually, you get more than a Java development environment as it comes with the latest GNU GCC tools for C++, Perl, and Python also. Read more at http://www.sun.com/software/solaris/.

The Curn Command-line RSS Reader

The Curn project, a Java-based command line (non-GUI) RSS reader, released version 3.0 (http://www.clapper.org/software/announcements/java/curn/v30.html) on July 7th. Curn employs techniques to minimize network bandwidth usage. One of the enhancements in this version is the addition of a plug-in API, allowing the development and deployment of plug-in components to intercept Curn's processing at various stages.

Posted by Eric Bruno at 02:31 AM  Permalink