Officially known as Java EE 6 (formerly J2SE), the release is no surprise. With Mustang, the Java Community Process has been releasing weekly code snapshots in a similar manner to previews that are commonplace among technology vendors and open-source projects.
Among the new features is a framework that allows popular scripting languages, such as JavaScript (which is not Java), Perl or Python to invoke Java objects, web services or full applications. Additionally, there are vague enhancements for tighter integration with Windows, Linux and Solaris desktops.
The new version also adds flexibility in performance monitoring. Jconsole, which is used for monitoring execution of Java applications down to the thread level, has added the ability to check an application that is already running. Previously, you had to start Jconsole when the application was opened.
And, in a seemingly hypocritical stance for Sun, the new version of Java SE is adding support for Solaris DTrace, the facility used for monitoring threads in Solaris. A Sun spokesperson declined to answer why Sun was pushing for a Solaris-specific extension to the Java spec after having spent years fighting Microsoft, which sought native tie-ins with Windows.
With the beta available now, the target for general availability of Java SE 6 is the fall.
