Debut for Microsoft-funded cross-platform Java environment

NEWS The first Java environment to support both Microsoft and Sun Java technologies in the same implementation has been demonstrated by a Microsoft-funded company. Tim Wilkinson, founder of Transvirtual Technologies, said: "Kaffe is the first true cross-platform Java technology." He said a collaboration with Microsoft enabled Transvirtual to develop the new Java Virtual Machine (JVM) but stressed that his company owns the code. "We're adding this code to our open source desktop version of Kaffe and we've retained the exclusive rights to use this it in our licensed version of Kaffe for Internet appliances," Wilkinson said. He added that Transvirtual's technology, which also runs programs written for Sun's version of Java, was written independently. Wilkinson explained that Kaffe is a JVM with an extensive set of libraries that handle graphics, file management, input/out and networking. "It provides a just-in-time code generation layer between the Java program and the environment in which it is running," he said. With the libraries, Kaffe allows full functionality, speed and optimized performance of Java on such multiple platforms as Linux, Solaris, DOS, SGI's Irix and many other operating systems. Sun says it has no problem with Transvirtual as long as it does not change Java code.