Java

Frustration is an industry standard

Robin Ward shares a tale of frustration about trying to connect a Microsoft IIS Web server to a BEA Weblogic application server using Java RMI (Remote Method Invocation), a plan he undertook because XML-RPC wasn't supporting more than 50 concurrent users: It's at times like these that I wish corporations were less selfish about their standards. Yes, standards are a good thing, but they're a blatant waste of time if you try to monopolize them. I was screwed over by two companies in this respect: ... (read more)

JXTA P2P architecture is peerless

I just submitted a column to Linux Magazine on JXTA, the open source XML-based peer-to-peer architecture developed by Sun. The JXTA site's tutorials section includes a really nice 140-page PDF tutorial for people just getting started on the subject: Project JXTA 2.0: Java Programmers Guide. Before beginning the column, I had no idea that JXTA was language agnostic. The only thing it has to do with Java is the fact that the reference implementation -- a 528-class, 88-package monster -- is ... (read more)

I'm getting naked in Linux Magazine

I just finished a 3,500-word column on Naked Objects for an upcoming issue of Linux Magazine. Naked Objects, unveiled at OOPSLA in November 2002, is a groovy open source framework for developing Java software that exposes objects and their methods directly to users. Using reflection, the objects and their methods are discovered and made available in a generic user interface (screenshot). The goal is to create software that consists of "behaviorally complete" objects which genuinely embody the ... (read more)

My head has been hoisted

At second glance, the Java Outline Editor is a nice outliner. I used the program to write my latest Java Matters column for Linux Magazine and I've been writing a lot of Radio UserLand Kick Start with Radio's outliner. I'm coming around to the idea that an outliner is a superior writing environment to word-processing software. I assemble these 2,000- to 2,500-word columns over several days with a lot of jumping between a Web browser, Java editor, command line, and the piece. I'm frequently ... (read more)

How to write effective unit tests

Jon Tirsen offers some advice for how to write good unit tests. Although his examples make use of JUnit, the popular testing library for Java, they apply to any kind of unit testing. ... (read more)

Editing OPML link directories with JOE

At first glance, the Java Outline Editor (JOE) looks like a suitable choice for editing OPML link directories and other outlines. The program supports the addition or deletion of any attributes to each outline item, enabling link directories to be created by adding type and url attributes (screenshot). It isn't as easy as using Radio, where you can hit CTRL-K or CMD-K to add a link to any title, but there may be a way to extend the functionality that I haven't found yet. Note: JOE has the same ... (read more)

Java.Com: Write once, Christina everywhere

For years, Java.Sun.Com has been Sun's official home page for the Java programming language, offering developer downloads, documentation, support, and lots of evangelization. The more obvious domain, Java.Com, was owned by a third party and no site was published there. At some point, Sun got its hands on the domain, as shown by the new Web site launched at Java.Com to sell consumers on the benefits of the language -- one of which is apparently Christina Aguilera. As Sun reveals, Java fulfills ... (read more)

With great parser comes great responsibility

On the OPML-DEV mailing list, Andrew Houghton confirms that undeclared entity declarations can prevent an XML file from being well-formed. Les Hill has sent me some code that solves this problem for an OPML browser written with Java that uses JDOM. I'll be posting more on it soon when I have time to try it out. He says that to read OPML, it "basically replaces the SAX parser with an almost identical parser that will recognize the XHTML entity set." Ouch. ... (read more)

Using OPML bookmarks in Mozilla and Netscape Navigator

I've released version 0.1 of OPML Link Publisher, a Java application that publishes an OPML link directory outline as a bookmarks.html file, which can be automatically loaded by Mozilla or Netscape Navigator and manually imported into Internet Explorer. I wrote the application because a Mozilla crash wiped out my bookmarks and I was tired of having bookmarks in several different browsers and other files. Radio UserLand's outliner can be used to create link directories (other outliners may ... (read more)

XOM class library simplifies Java XML processing

Linux Magazine has posted XOM: XML Made Simpler, my article from the March issue about an extremely well-designed new XML processing API for Java developed by Java and XML computer book author Elliotte Rusty Harold. The article was written with XOM version 1.0d8 -- subsequent versions have changed a few things that may affect the example programs. ... (read more)