It's been a few weeks since it was announced that Oracle would move Java EE to the Eclipse Foundation and we're already starting to see indications of how it's shaping up. It was clear that something had to happen. Oracle was struggling to make the best of Java EE, which was reflected in the usage stats.
The technology wasn't holding its place against some more flexible alternatives and by moving to an open-source organisation, Java EE has been given the kickstart that it needs. This is a project that aims to define API specifications, reference implementations, and technology compatibility kits for Java application servers. In addition to that, the intent is to create a community-based build infrastructure for EE4J as well.
He warned that it will not be an instant process. The recent experience with Eclipse MicroProfile demonstrates we know how to do specifications, and our years of experience with EclipseLink does the same for reference implementations.
Rich Sharples, senior director of product management at Red Hat, reckons the move is about the wider picture. He said that this means looking beyond Java EE. It's not just for the folks enamoured of EE but for anybody interesting in building complex scalable applications in Java. There are further other projects in the pipeline, all ones that will drive Java EE forward but Milinkovich said there's a lot of work still to be done.
This means moving GlassFish and others over to Eclipse projects. GlassFish has over git repos so just moving that over will be a large effort. I think it is accepted the pace on innovation has slowed and not responded to cloud native technology. The good news is that we see Eclipse EE4J being a major force for accelerating innovation in the enterprise ecosystem around Java.
