.Net vs Java

The purpose of this post is the answer the age old question “Should I use Java or .NET?”  What are the advantages of each?  What are the disadvantages of each?  How should corporations decide which platform to use?

.NET platform

.NET applications are built by developing in any of the .NET languages such as C#, VB, or C++, which is then compiled into the CIL (Common intermediate language) byte-code.  Next, the CIL is converted into assembly which can then be executed on any Windows machine.

Java platform

J2EE applications are built by developing in Java only, which is then compiled into Java byte-code.  The intermediate byte-code is then converted to assembly using the JVM (Java Virtual Machine).  Unlike the .NET platform, however, the assembly code created from the JVM can run on any platform, including Windows, Unix, Solaris, or Mac OS.

Platform dependency

The major difference between Java and .NET is their platform dependencies.  .NET applications can only be run on Windows, while Java applications can be run on any machine.

Cost

The next major difference between Java and .NET is cost.  Since Java is open source, it’s completely free to develop and deploy Java applications.  It’s most popular IDEs like Eclipse and JBuilder are also free.  Furthermore, since Java applications are platform independent, they can be ran on UNIX machines, which is a free OS.  Essentially, the only cost associated with running Java programs would be the cost of hardware.

.NET applications, on the other hand, can only run on Windows machines, so Windows Server licenses will need to be purchased.  Unlike the Java platform which leverages free IDEs, .NET applications are built with Visual Studio, which is also requires a paid license.

As a result, small companies and startups are much more likely to have J2EE frameworks than .NET frameworks simply because it’s 100% free to develop Java applications.

Corporate infrastructure

Unfortunately, whether to choose the .NET platform or the Java platform isn’t always under your control.  In the corporate world, it’s very common for corporations to acquire other companies.  As a result, even if the corporation in question was originally built on a Java platform running on all UNIX machines, after a number of acquisitions that same company might now have a whole farm of UNIX, Solaris, and Windows machines.  In other words, larger corporations tend to be made up of both Java and .Net applications.  This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it sure can complicate your IT department!

Interoperability

This is sometimes an overlooked topic in the Java vs .NET debate –  .NET applications can theoretically be written in many different languages, including C#, VB, and C++ to name the major ones.  On one hand, this might provide you with the flexibility to hire programmers with different skill sets, allowing say a C++ developer to build certain portions of an application, and a C# developer to build other portions of an application.  Like any double edged sword, however, this can cause problems with maintainability.  The more languages that your application is built in, the harder it will be to keep the correct proportion of developers with each skill set to maintain the code when changes need to be made.

Java applications, as mentioned before, are only developed in Java.  This means that you won’t ever have the problem of training your developers in different languages, spending your company’s time and money.  It also makes the scalability of your applications much easier to handle, because if you need more developers, you simply hire more Java programmers.

GUI

Another difference between .NET and Java is the way that GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces) are handled.  .NET GUIs are somewhat easier to develop because they can directly access the graphical components of the Windows OS.  Although Java Swing and SWT (Standard Widget Toolkit) enable developers to create GUI elements on any platform, it is somewhat more cumbersome to manage than .NET

RIA dependencies

Finally, another difference to take into consideration is the emergence of new RIA (Rich Internet Application) technologies like Adobe Flex, Microsoft Silverlight, ICEfaces, and Javascript libraries like jQuery, YUI, and ExtJS.

If you’re building web applications using Adobe Flex or ICEfaces, you’ll need the Java platform.  If on the other hand you want to develop RIA applications using Silverlight, you’ll have to use the .NET platform.  If your web applications will be built using a Javascript library like jQuery, either platform will be just fine!

Conclusion

The reason that the Java vs .NET debate continues to rage on is simply because both platforms are excellent.  There’s nothing that one platform can do that the other can’t do.  But, under the certain circumstances explained above, it is sometimes advantageous to choose one over the other.

Mac OS X Lion

Lion is a significant step forward for Mac OS X, but it's not without its problems. Features such as Mission Control, Resume, Auto Save and Versions will prove incredibly useful over time. Launchpad may prove its worth, but even if it remains unused, it's not in the way. Many Mac owners will miss Rosetta, but its demise was inevitable. Not so Front Row, which didn't need to be dropped at all. Maybe Apple will put it in the App Store as a free download.

Despite a few teething troubles (most notably breaking third-party NAS compatibility and a few questionable interface decisions), Lion is definitely worth the upgrade. Like most OS upgrades it will probably really shine after its second or third update, but unless you're running PowerPC applications you can't be without, there's no need to wait.

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is a technology that uses the internet and central remote servers to maintain data and applications. Cloud computing allows consumers and businesses to use applications without installation and access their personal files at any computer with internet access. This technology allows for much more inefficient computing by centralizing storage, memory, processing and bandwidth.

A simple example of cloud computing is Yahoo email, Gmail, or Hotmail etc. You dont need a software or a server to use them. All a consumer would need is just an internet connection and you can start sending emails. The server and email management software is all on the cloud ( internet) and is totally managed by the cloud service provider Yeah , Google etc. The consumer gets to use the software alone and enjoy the benefits. The analogy is , 'If you need milk , would you buy a cow ?' All the users or consumers need is to get the benefits of using the software or hardware of the computer like sending emails etc. Just to get this benefit (milk) why should a consumer buy a (cow) software /hardware ?

Cloud computing is broken down into three segments: "application" "storage" and "connectivity." Each segment serves a different purpose and offers different products for businesses and individuals around the world. In June 2011, a study conducted by VersionOne found that 91% of senior IT professionals actually don't know what cloud computing is and two-thirds of senior finance professionals are clear by the concept, highlighting the young nature of the technology. In Sept 2011, an Aberdeen Group study found that disciplined companies achieved on average an 68% increase in their IT expense because cloud computing and only a 10% reduction in data center power costs.