Jun 28
A few months back I started a new job. A large part of this new job entails building and maintaining Java desktop applications. A large part of my life has recently been eaten away by terse API docs, vague explanations of core and advanced features, and minimalist and nearly useless code examples of said features.
Though it's a great change of pace from years of working mainly in PHP, it means I don't have much free time to work on things I like. Like Lace. At least for a little while.
I'm hoping that getting back into Java after a 5 year hiatus will be good for me. The Java landscape is difficult for me to accurately gauge, but it seems as though Java on the desktop is trending back into fashion.
Once I settle in to Java and my new role, I hope to be able to pick up my side projects again. It's unfortunate, but Lace and other projects don't pay the bills.
Comments
Re: Java?
I'm not claiming to have any authority on the subject, but if you ask me, Java missed the desktop boat long ago. However, Java 6 (Mustang) has some desktop-friendly additions: most notably, improvements to many Swing components, the integration of JDIC and support for native GUI widgets.
New projects like Aerith and IONdb, and of course, Java desktop vets LimeWire and Azureus are proof that Java is viable on the desktop. But it hasn't been until recently that Sun has been able to catch up.
Java?
Java on the desktop? All the Java programmers I know long ago switched to XUL.