Java Development Tools Speed MIDlet Creation

April 14, 2003

Java development tools continue to steadily improve, as does compiler and interpreter performance. Most major Java development packages include support for J2ME and MIDP. There is, of course, Sun Microsystems' SunONE (Open Net Environment) Studio (www.sun.com). This operates with the 2ME Wireless Toolkit from the company. It works with most Java development tools and provides remote monitoring and profiling tools. Additionally, it can simulate low-speed network connections on high-speed networks, as most MIDP-based devices have low-speed links.

A number of third-party Java development products also support J2ME and MIDP. Borland's JBuilder MobileSet (www.borland.com) and Metrowerks' Code Warrior (www.metrowerks.com) are two well-known examples. These employ proprietary user interfaces just like Sun's SunONE.

An alternative to the proprietary integrated development environments (IDEs) is Eclipse (www.eclipse.org). This open-source IDE is written in Java designed for extensions using a plug-in architecture. A number of companies have adopted Eclipse. For example, IBM's Websphere (www.ibm.com), TimeSys' TimeStorm (www.timesys.com), and QNX's Momentics (www.qnc.com) are built on Eclipse.

They support Java, C, and C++ development tools and add their own configuration and management tools to Eclipse. This includes operating-system configuration as well as access to diagnostic tools. Eclipse-based tools have the advantage of being compatible with other Eclipse-based plug-ins. For instance, a number of source-code-management tools, database-management tools, and system-management tools are available now or being developed for Eclipse. Another Eclipse advantage is that it runs on most systems that support Java, including Windows, Linux, and Solaris.

About the Author

William G. Wong | Senior Content Director - Electronic Design and Microwaves & RF

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