Re: The great Java showcase (re: 2nd historic mistake)

[Bertrand Meyer <Bertrand.Meyer@eiffel.com>]

James P. White wrote:
 
[Quoting me]
> > It's really fascinating to read this again a month later,
> > with the recent announcements -- widely reported by the
> > press -- that Corel is dropping its Java strategy altogether.
> >
> > So much for the showcase success of the century...

[James P. White]

> As I am sure you will hear, those reports were entirely inaccurate.

The Toronto Globe and Mail wrote that Corel was "ditching"
Java efforts. This has been criticized on some newsgroups
as being exaggerated. But here is the report from Computer
Reseller News in Techwire (see
http://192.215.107.71/wire/news/aug/0817corel.html
for the full text):

        OTTAWA -- Corel has rethought its Java strategy, 
        according to sources briefed by the company.

        Now, the plan is to put the bulk of application
        logic on servers, which would then
        serve up what's needed to the client, whether that client
        is a PC or a Network Computer, said Amy Wohl, president
        of Wohl Associates, a Narberth, Pa., researcher.

        Previously, the company was rewriting its bread-and-butter
        drawing and productivity applications in Java. But that
        effort has been delayed significantly.

        Corel now plans to use home-grown technology, code-named
        Remagen [...]
        
        There still will be a lower-end Java suite for NCs due in
        October, Wohl noted, but the thrust has shifted considerably
        to the enterprise.

The word "altogether" in "Dropping its Java strategy altogether"
was based on the initial press reports and may turn out to be too
strong. The jury is still out as to how "altogether" the drop is,
although in the software business "delayed significantly" is often a
euphemism for something more fatal. The point of my note (not a flame,
just a reporting of fact) stands: that the great showcase of Java
triumph, reported everywhere including in these newsgroups, was
perhaps advertized a bit prematurely.

See also: http://www4.zdnet.com/anchordesk/story/story_799.html.

-- 
Bertrand Meyer, President, ISE Inc.
ISE Building, 2nd floor, 270 Storke Road, Goleta CA 93117
805-685-1006, fax 805-685-6869, <Bertrand.Meyer@eiffel.com>
http://www.eiffel.com, with instructions for download