TEAM Zarate Tarrani Notes From the Field

Foul Play. Linda's last entry highlighted some disturbing behind-the-scenes maneuvering that, frankly, are a threat to open computing and interoperability. A 14 May article By Wylie Wong titled Microsoft ploy to block Sun exposed uncovers more foul play.

This goes much deeper than Microsoft's shenanigans. IBM shares the guilt, and based on past history Sun isn't exactly clean either. In this case they are the victim, but do you doubt that they would have been the perpetrator given the opportunity? No, this isn't a Microsoft or IBM sin, it's an indictment of the lack of ethics in our industry and it underscores the reason why we have anti-trust legislation to begin with. However, the courts should not bear the burden of sorting this mess out. We have a responsibility to just say no to technology based on proprietary standards. Until that happens we're going to get what we deserve, and it will be a regression to closed-systems and lack of interoperability.

On a Positive Note. If you develop in the J2EE environment you should be frequently visiting The ServerSide, which contains news, articles and other resources. Registration is free, and two great reasons to register are free PDF copies of:

1. Mastering Enterprise JavaBeans (the same material that is contained in the paper book with the same title by Ed Roman, Scott W. Ambler, Tyler Jewell and Floyd Marinescu). The source code that goes with the book is also available for free download.
2. EJB Design Patterns in PDF format, which is identical to the paper book with the same title by Floyd Marinescu and Ed Roman. Note: the PDF version of the book has not been put in the download section yet, but you can still get the source code.

Remember, you need to register for a free account to download these valuable books and source code. You'll also get access to discussion boards and articles, such as Critical measures when beginning a J2EE project, that are sure to increase your knowledge (not to mention saving money on books).

The ServerSide has a sister site called The Middleware Company, which also requires registration and also has invaluable resources. Their article library is filled with whitepapers and articles that you'll find useful.