The Ajax wildfire makes many people constantly think about what impact it has on other technologies such as Java, Flash and .NET. Are application developers going to switch from other technologies to Ajax? I explored this subject with regard to Flash in my earlier post

   The Converging Developer Community - AJAX to overtake Flash

In that post, a survey conducted by SitePoint revealed that Ajax is overtaking Flash over the next 12 months. What does Ajax mean to Java, in particular, client side Java?

I am thinking about proposing a talk at some of the upcoming conferences with regard to Ajax and Java. For example, JavaOne. Would like to see if people think this proposal is interesting.

Title: Is Ajax Deprecating Client Side Java?

Abstract:

Demand for better user experience has brought rich Internet application into center stage of application development. Ajax and Java both are strong and open technologies for developing rich applications. Historically, Java has been the technology of choice for rich client development with options such as Swing and Eclipse RCP. Java-based rich applications can be deployed onto a browser or even mobile devices. However, the rapid rise of Ajax over the last 18 months captured everybody’s attention. Even historically strong Java communities have been rushing to catch the band wagon of Ajax.

Is Ajax stealing the thunder of client side Java? Where does client side Java fit in a world that everyone is fascinated by Ajax? How does Java and Ajax stack up against each other? From a functionality perspective, both have been proven to be capable of enabling sophisticated client side applications. From a developer skill set, should enterprises try to convert Java developers into Ajax developers? Within both Java and Ajax, there are a wide variety of toolkits and deployment options, what are the tradeoffs between these? If you need to make a choice for your project, how do you decide between Ajax and Java?

In this presentation we will use a demo application built on both Java and Ajax to illustrate the differences and values offered by Ajax and Java, factors that developers need to consider when deciding between the two technologies.

Presentation Summary:
  • Introduction and overview of client side Java and Ajax
  • Fundamental concepts
    • Declarative and programmatic programming models
    • Java toolkits vs. Ajax toolkits
    • Application development: Java vs. Ajax
    • Application deployment : Java vs. Ajax
    • Tools and code maintenance: Java vs. Ajax
  • Introduction of the demo application "Web Trader" on both Ajax and Java
  • Comparing Ajax and Client side Java:
    • User interface: Java vs. Ajax
    • Business logic: Java vs. Ajax
    • Data integration: Java vs. Ajax
    • Performance and code maintainability: Ajax vs. Java
    • When to pick what?
  • Evaluation of various Java and Ajax toolkits
    • Java:
      • Swing, Eclipse RCP, Nexaweb, Thinlet, etc.
    • Ajax:
      • Apache XAP, Dojo, Scriptaculous, etc.
      • jMaki, etc.
  • Conclusion

What do you think? Would you be interested in going to such a talk?