What is Visual J++??

[Paul]

I've been programming for several years, most recently with Visual FoxPro.
Now I'm moving into Java. MS has what they call "Visual J++", which ought
to be easier for me to learn, since I'm already familiar with Visual Studio.

On the other hand, I know there's a lot of enmity between the Java world
and the MS world, plus there was that lawsuit... I recently read through
a Java magazine and didn't see the word "Microsoft" anywhere! :-)

So the question is, should I use Visual J++, or something else? Why?

And if it's something else, what do people recommend, and why?

Thanks!

[Tom Duffy]

Hello Paul:

J++ is Microsoft's Java tool. It's based on old technology (JDK 1.1.4) because
of the lawsuit you mention so many of the cool, new features of Java are
unavailable. Microsoft sees Java as an attractive alternative to writing
Windows apps - and nothing more.

I've been "doing" Java for about 3 years and came from a VB background.
I use Visual Cafe from WebGain (used to be Symantec) and am very happy with
it. If you like Visual Studio, you'll appreciate many of Cafe's features.
But, like any other IDE, Cafe is not without its quirks.

Choosing an IDE is very much a matter of taste. I've heard good things about
Inprise's JBuilder, Oracle's JDeveloper, and Sun's Forte. They all impose
some constraint on you regarding how you go about coding. I've found myself
looking at standard Java code (i.e. done with a text editor) and envisioning
how Cafe could make writing the code easier. Many times there is an easier
way - especially for programs with a GUI - when you use an IDE. Sometimes
there just isn't an easier route.

My advice is to get a hold of as many demos as you can and try them out.
Figure out which one works best for you and stick with it,

HTH,

Tom Duffy

"Paul" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote:
>
>I've been programming for several years, most recently with Visual FoxPro.
>Now I'm moving into Java. MS has what they call "Visual J++", which ought
>to be easier for me to learn, since I'm already familiar with Visual Studio.
>
>On the other hand, I know there's a lot of enmity between the Java world
>and the MS world, plus there was that lawsuit... I recently read through
>a Java magazine and didn't see the word "Microsoft" anywhere! :-)
>
>So the question is, should I use Visual J++, or something else? Why?
>
>And if it's something else, what do people recommend, and why?
>
>Thanks!
>
>

[Patrick Lentz]

I started to work for a company that programs in Java, so I had to learn that
with my Visual Basic background. (And still am by the way)At first I was
happy they used J++ because the environment reminded me of Visual Basic of
course, but the disadvantage is that with this IDE you are kinda pushed to
use MS's own com.ms classes instead of the pure java classes. Also if you
wanna use it, it's complicated to use Java 1.2 or 1.3 with it..Someone showed
me a way (importing swingall.jar) to be able to use the swingclasses in J++
but it's far from ideal. Fair is fair J++ does have one of the best debugging
tools or so I have heard.
Anyways,if you do have the choice of starting out with a IDE of your choice
I would go for JBuilder. Time after time it wins the polls among java programmers
and I'm sure with a reason.
I have just downloaded JBuilder3.5 from the Borland website and this is a
fully functional version with the limitation that your project can "only"
be 600 classes big. I would suggest downloading it so you can play around
with it. If you download the documentation as well you will find a nice tutorial
inthere too.
Good luck with Java ! In general a good choice to get into it I think..I
mean it sounds very materialistic and all,but I'm like if you spend your
day programming anyway, you might as well get the most money out of it too
right? And apart from that I think with Sun's JDK 1.3 available now, you
can do pretty much anything you want with it, so it's fun too ) So have
fun!

"Paul" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote:
>
>I've been programming for several years, most recently with Visual FoxPro.
>Now I'm moving into Java. MS has what they call "Visual J++", which ought
>to be easier for me to learn, since I'm already familiar with Visual Studio.
>
>On the other hand, I know there's a lot of enmity between the Java world
>and the MS world, plus there was that lawsuit... I recently read through
>a Java magazine and didn't see the word "Microsoft" anywhere! :-)
>
>So the question is, should I use Visual J++, or something else? Why?
>
>And if it's something else, what do people recommend, and why?
>
>Thanks!
>
>

[Javier Soques]

Visual J++ is a dead product for Microsoft. The next release of Visual
Studio doesn´t have Visual J++ but instead will have another product called
C# (Cee sharp). Kind of a C++ but easier to use (no pointers, automátic
garbage collection, etc.) sounds like a Java clone.

"Paul" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message news:395be2d2$1@news.devx.com...
>
> I've been programming for several years, most recently with Visual FoxPro.
> Now I'm moving into Java. MS has what they call "Visual J++", which ought
> to be easier for me to learn, since I'm already familiar with Visual
Studio.
>
> On the other hand, I know there's a lot of enmity between the Java world
> and the MS world, plus there was that lawsuit... I recently read through
> a Java magazine and didn't see the word "Microsoft" anywhere! :-)
>
> So the question is, should I use Visual J++, or something else? Why?
>
> And if it's something else, what do people recommend, and why?
>
> Thanks!
>
>

[Paul]

I guess the answer is, "Stay away from J++."

Thanks to all the people who responded.