The suite of tests and reference material allows ISVs (independent
software vendors) and corporate software developers to make sure
applications they design work with any J2EE application server from any
vendor.
A number of vendors, including IBM Corp., BEA Systems Inc., Oracle Corp.
and Sun, have built application server software products that are based
on the standard J2EE specification. However, some of those vendors have
released versions of their software with special extensions to
differentiate their offerings from the rest of the pack. As a result, an
application designed specifically for BEA's application server won't
necessarily be able to run on IBM's WebSphere Application Server.
Only applications that don't target any vendor-specific extensions, but
rather target just the generic J2EE specifications, will pass the Java
Verification Program, the company said.
"The ISV that put out J2EE applications can put out (a product) that
people know will work on all the implementations of J2EE," said David
Harrah, a Java marketing manager at Sun, in Santa Clara, California.
"You want to ensure that those applications are portable across all
these different application servers."
Sun and others have expressed concerns in the past that extensions being
added to vendor offerings that don't adhere to the J2EE specification
could create a confusing market for customers.
"What we don't want is somebody going out with an application that they
say is J2EE-based, and 'Boom!' -- it doesn't run with the rest of the
platform," Harrah said.
The Java Verification Program, which will include a test kit called the
Java Application Verification Kit for the Enterprise, is intended to
prevent any confusion in the marketplace, Harrah said. Applications that
adhere to the program can carry a "Java Verified" brand and logo.
Enterprise developers who build applications that pass the verification
tests will be able to participate in Sun-sponsored co-marketing
opportunities, the company said.
Sun said it expects to release a similar test suite for applications
designed to run on J2ME (Java 2 Micro Edition) platforms, a Java
implementation designed for small computing devices such as cell phones.
It has yet to set a date for that release, Harrah said.
