PHYSICS

Sun Microsystems, Inc., the inventor of the Java(TM) technology platform, today announced availability of a free Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) 1.4 Application Verification Kit (AVK) at java.sun.com/j2ee/avk. The new J2EE AVK tests for portability and the correct use of J2EE APIs across J2EE technology-compatible application servers, helping to deliver assurance to customers that their solutions remain portable across the multi-vendor J2EE technology-based application server environment. "One way in which developers seek to optimize resources is effective utilization of their existing infrastructure investment," said Joe Keller, vice president, marketing for Java Web Services and Tools, Sun Microsystems. "The J2EE 1.4 AVK enables developers to do just that, providing for easier application migration from one application server to another, increasing code reusability, eliminating the need to install and test across multiple application servers and making multiple vendor environments not just feasible, but efficient. Sun is proud to be the only company to deliver a product that offers these very practical, very effective results." The J2EE specification describes the standard elements of a J2EE-compatible application server, providing the basis for portability. However, application servers frequently include proprietary extensions that provide added value to those customers with special requirements, but are not available across the range of J2EE-compatible products. As such, the use of a single application server can lead to a dependence on proprietary APIs and/or non-standard J2EE APIs, resulting in reduced application portability. The J2EE 1.4 AVK provides a complete testing solution for this problem, comprising the following functionality: -- Web services testing such as static checking for Web services endpoints and dynamic checking for both Enterprise JavaBeans(TM) (EJBs(TM)) and Servlet-based Web services; -- Source code scanning for incompatible proprietary APIs that would cause interoperability challenges; -- Incorporation of ANT (an open source program from the Apache Software Foundation for efficiently assembling all the pieces of a program) tasks in the development cycle; -- Mapping assertions tested to the specification, enabling easy lookup; and -- Component libraries.