The correct title of this article is J#. The substitution or omission of a # sign is because of technical restrictions.

The J# (pronounced 'jay-sharp') programming language is a transitional language for programmers of Sun's Java and Microsoft's J++ languages, so they may use their existing knowledge and applications on Microsoft's .NET platform. J# can work with Java bytecode as well as source so it can be used to transition applications that use third party libraries even if their original source is unavailable. It was developed by the Hyderabad-based Microsoft India Development Center at HITEC City in India. [1]

Contents

Fundamental differences between J# and Java

Java and J# use the same general syntax but there are non-Java conventions in J# to support the .NET environment. For example, to use .NET "properties" with a standard JavaBean class (the Transfer Object pattern), it is necessary to prefix getXxx and setXxx methods with the Javadoc-like annotation:

	/** @beanproperty	 */

and change the corresponding private variable name to be different than the suffix of the getXxx/setXxx names.

J# does not compile Java-language source code to Java bytecode (.class files), and does not support Java applet development or the ability to host applets directly in a web browser, although it does provide a wrapper called Microsoft J# Browser Controls for hosting them as ActiveX objects. Finally, Java Native Interface (JNI) and Raw Native Interface (RNI) are substituted with P/Invoke, J# does not support Remote Method Invocation (RMI).

J#'s interface to the .NET framework is solid, but not as seamless as C#. In particular, J# code cannot define new .NET attributes, events, value types, or delegates. J# can make use of these language constructs if they are defined in an assembly written in another language, but its inability to define new ones limits J#'s reach and interoperability compared to other .NET languages.

Future of J#

J# is generally not considered to be a language on par with C# or VB.NET, and does not have the same level of support, samples, or updates as the other languages do. This fact notwithstanding, J# is a usable .NET language and has access to all the CLR features.

The Microsoft J# product team made two important announcements on the future of J# in January 2007: [2]

Visual J# 2005 Express Edition is still available free of charge from Microsoft's website. [4]

See also

References

  1. ^ S Prasanna, Microsoft's VJ#.Net is made in India, Express Computer, 2002-07-29
  2. ^ Microsoft Developer Network, Visual J# Product Announcement, 2007-01-10
  3. ^ Visual J# 2.0 Second Edition Redistributable Download, Microsoft Download Center
  4. ^ Visual Studio 2005 Express Editions

External links

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1 Languages that are or have been included with Visual Studio or Microsoft Windows.
2 Non-academic or research languages with relatively large user-bases.
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