Java Magazine - July/August 2012

JDK FOR MAC OS X AVAILABLE

Oracle has released its first Java Development Kit (JDK) and JavaFX Software Development Kit (SDK) for Mac OS X.

Java developers can now download Java Platform, Standard Edition 7, Update 4 (Java SE 7 Update 4) and JavaFX SDK 2. 1 for Mac OS X from Oracle Technology Network. The Java SE 7 Update 4 SDK includes the next-generation Garbage Collection algorithm, Garbage First (G1), which has been highly anticipated by the Java developer community.

JavaFX 2. 1 introduces playback support for digital media stored in the MPEG- 4 multimedia container format containing H.264/AVC video and Advanced Audio Coding audio.

It also includes WebView support for JavaScript to Java method calls. “We look forward to delivering simultaneous releases of the JRE [Java runtime environment] across all major operating systems later this year, so all Java users will be able to take advantage of the latest features and security fixes,” says Hasan Rizvi, senior vice president of Oracle Fusion Middleware and Java products at Oracle.

JAVA IN ACTION JAVA TECH

Silicon Valley JUG Mountain View, California
JAVA USER GROUP PROFILE

WHEN THE SILICON VALLEY WEB DEVELOPER JAVA USER GROUP WAS FORMED in April 2003 by Van Riper, its initial focus was on the Jakarta Struts framework. In July 2004, the focus was broadened to include J2EE. Today, the group covers all Java technologies and as of April 2012 is known as the Silicon Valley Java User Group (SVJUG).

Kevin Nilson joined Riper as coleader in 2007, when the group still had fewer than 100 members. Joining Meetup in 2009 proved to be a turning point in growth. By August 2009, the group had 536 members, which doubled to 1,071 by May 2010. Current membership exceeds 2,300.

SVJUG meets on the third Wednesday of each month at
Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, with
attendance ranging from 100 to 200 people. The JUG’s
location provides many advantages, Nilson says, especially
with regard to speakers. “Some of the top speakers we have
had are James Gosling, Joshua Bloch, Rod Johnson, Neal
Gafter, Bob Lee, Gavin King, Chet Haase, Romain Guy, and
the Java Posse.”
Even the attendees have been known to give presen-
tations in a pinch. “Once I made a scheduling mistake
and realized that our speaker was not scheduled to come
until one month later,” Nilson says. “Luckily jQuery com-
mitters Jonathan Sharp and Mike Holster were in the
front row. At 6: 55 p.m., I approached them about giving a
talk at 7:00 p.m. Jonathan and Mike were happy to fill in
and gave a great presentation.”
Marakana Tech TV records many SVJUG talks, and when
the JUG cohosts a meeting with the Silicon Valley JavaFX
Meetup, Marakana live-streams the event. “Our group has
been very lucky because others have stepped up to help
record our talks,” notes Nilson. “We do not do any of our
own recording, so usually only popular talks get recorded.”
SVJUG members also actively participate in the Silicon
Valley Code Camp, a community event where developers
learn from fellow developers. All are welcome to attend and
speak—more than 2,000 developers attended last year.