Key Embedded Java Standards

Though Sun Microsystems (www.sun.com) started the JCP and remains the dominant factor in the creation and approval of Java Specification Requests (JSR), a host of companies, organizations, and individuals also play a role. JSRs tend to gain approval only after months or even years of discussion, and the numbering convention, although sequential, only indicates when the process starts. For example, JSR-1, the Real-Time Specification for Java, will have production versions available only later this year. As Muksh Patel, president of hardware vendor Nazomi, notes, "JCP is time consuming, but it works." It allows companies like Nazomi to incorporate such features as multimedia support in a standard fashion. www.jcp.org