Java is the Language of Choice for Creating Internet Services Applications for Wireless Devices

Java 2 Platform, Micro Edition (J2ME) is turning into a major platform for wireless application development. Compared with desktop and server-side application development, Java-based wireless development faces some unique challenges. For example, small wireless devices have little processing power, limited memory, short battery life, and unreliable network connections. To develop wireless applications, we must design graphical user interfaces suitable for small devices, use lightweight components, and shift resource intensive tasks to the server side using sound network designs. As a result, J2ME supports only parts of the standard Java API libraries, with lightweight alternative APIs for handling complex tasks such as GUIs. For more than five years, Java 2 Platform, Micro Edition (J2ME) and its predecessors, such as PersonalJava, have served as the only viable platforms for developing managed smart clients on mobile or embedded devices. But that will soon change. With the introduction of Visual Studio .Net (VS.Net) 2003 in the first half of 2003, Microsoft will make its managed environment, .Net, available on Windows-powered mobile devices with its new product, the .Net Compact Framework (.Net CF). Given Windows' dominance in the desktop market and .Net's presence in the enterprise market, every mobile Java developer must be prepared for the coming challenge. I argue that even though some standardization is need, Java is the language of choice for developing Internet/Web services applications for Wireless devices. The reasons for this include: support for multiple platforms, security, the API specification process, support for both consumer and enterprise applications, life cycle management, and great variety in development tools.