AJAX was a hot topic here at JavaOne. Because I’m now a red badge, I spent most of my time talking with folks from Sun and many other companies, so I didn’t get to any of the AJAX sessions. I’m not sure the Java community is has quite sucked in all the benefits of AJAX yet, primarily because Java people (myself included!) tend to be very mono-lingual in their approach. It’s impossible to make broad generalizations about the Java community without being wrong right out the gate (as I’ve done before), but I wouldn’t say that the typical definition of “Java developer” includes good skills at AJAX.
I’m all about the multi-lingual approach and the benefits that it brings: best of bread and the ability to not use the best new functionality as it emerges, but learn from it. My hope then is that the emerging uptick in the Java world’s interest in AJAX is much higher by next year’s JavaOne.
Enterprise AJAX
I spent quite a lot of time talking with André Charland today and yesterday while JavaOne was winding down. We first met his company, eBusiness Applications, a month or more ago via a briefing. To his credit as a CEO, he did a damn good job tracking us down and spending time with us at JavaOne. And though I certainly enjoyed hanging out with him, he did a good job of interlacing his company into our conversation as appropriate. As they say in my wife’s line of work — activist non-profit — he’s always on message.
To boil that message down, they’re doing Enterprise AJAX: they build components like grids/spreadsheets, combo boxes, and other AJAX powered UI components used to enhance web applications.
In talking with them in the past, in blogs, and over the past few days it’s become clear to me that the money in AJAX programming is going to be in re-doing intranet, behind-the-firewall web applications. Sure, if you’re a Web 2.0 media company (Yahoo!, Google, MSN, etc.), an established software company, or rock-star consultant, you can just weave AJAX into whatever else you’re selling. But, if you want to be an AJAX tools and framework company, the best bet is selling to the intranet web application market, or “corporate developers” as I think of that group.
Though we haven’t talked to any of their customers, from what André has told us, they do good business selling to companies in just that model/market.
AJAX Podcast Planning
The DrunkAndRetired.com Podcast listeners out there are probably thinking that Charles‘s company, The Front Side is in a similar area. Indeed, I’ll hopefully be putting together a podcast with the 3 of us next week to discuss this topic.
So, if you have any question about AJAX, esp. using AJAX to TCB, send ’em over or leave a comment below, and we’ll see what André and Charles think.
Disclaimer: Sun is a client.
Technorati Tags: ajax, conferences, intranet, javaone, javaone2006, programming, thefrontside
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