Comments on: Devoxx 08 Wrapup

By: maarten

maarten — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 12:03:48 +0000

I think Java FX has some nice features (I especially liked the ability to drag an applet out of the browser) but I am somewhat concerned about the security. Flash runs in a secure sandbox with limited access to the system where as Java can do just about everything when you allow it to run. Many people click ‘ok’ without verifying the signer etc. This will make it hard for them to go head to head with flash, although it does allow for powerful rich clients. As for syntax : commas and semicolons are optional, Really?? that will make to code look even worse.

By: Pop

Pop — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 12:37:57 +0000

IMHO JavaFX will have a VERY long road to run up to catch up with Flex. Flash Player is available on almost every personal computer, it’s a matter of time before every lightweight device does the same (there is already quite a good bunch of mobile phones with a flash player). Silverlight stands a chance because of Microsoft power and capability of embedding the player in their Windows system.
Even if I’m very fond of Java and the work guys at Sun do, I don’t think JavaFX stands a chance.

By: Romain Guy

Romain Guy — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 11:26:08 +0000

I agree the demos were not as impressive but the Flex demos Chet showed were tutorial demos, aimed at explaining how one particular feature works. The JavaFX demos, on the other hand, were demos to showcase the potential of JavaFX. You can certainly find equivalent demos for Flex on various websites.

By: Pieter

Pieter — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 11:24:20 +0000

I liked the demo’s Chet gave on Gumbo and Pixelbender at Devoxx, though a collegue of mine says they are not as impressive as JavaFX, I think Flex has (and will keep) the upper hand at the moment.

By: Romain Guy

Romain Guy — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 10:36:08 +0000

JavaFX has very interesting pieces in it but I’m not excited about it. Even though the language has very nice features (like the bind keyword), I find it hard to read. I am also much more interested in the tools available for Flex than the ones for JavaFX (granted, Flex Builder needs a lot of work :). And “Tour de Flex” is not meant to be impressive, it’s just a collection of demos showcasing the Flex APIs, much like Java SE’s SwingSet.

By: Thierry

Thierry — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 10:28:03 +0000

I still think that JavaFX is the most impressive release by Sun in a long time.
There is nothing to be ashamed of when you compare it to Flex or Silverlight.
When I see ‘Tour de Flex’, it is not that impressive. Not at all.
Competition is good.

By: Romain Guy

Romain Guy — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 10:05:22 +0000

Gumbo has a few very interesting changes, most notably a new components model and better animations/effects APIs. I’m also very excited about Flash Catalyst (ex-Thermo). I can’t wait to give this tool a try.

By: Pop

Pop — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 09:51:31 +0000

Are you going to put slides/source you presented online?
I’ve been working with Flex for about a year now and I’m really amased at how costless it is to get a pimping rich app on the tracks. If you take (very little) time to skin the components you can really make astonishing things, especially when you start playing around with Papervision.
Have you seen interesting things about Gumbo (Flex 4)? I should have attended Adobe Max in Milano but it finally wasn’t possible, I would have liked to see what the Adobe crew was going to show!