Eight years ago, and still counting

By Alan Zeichick

June 15, 2008 —

This month we celebrate the 200th issue of SD Times. The industry newspaper for software development managers debuted in February 2000, and our very first issue documented one of the biggest launches of the modern software era: the creation of Java 2 Micro Edition, the optimized Java runtime for embedded devices. Since then, we’ve seen new platforms, new paradigms, new companies and more. Join us on a journey back, with stops every five months to check out the landscape.

Issue 1, Feb. 23, 2000: Sun targeted Internet appliances with J2ME, while eXcelon and CSI USA formed an XML alliance, and Compuware put a new face on its Uniface thin-client Web application server.

Issue 10, July 15, 2000: Remember WebGain? It bought the Spin RAD software from Zat Inc., while Interbase Software released version 6 of its eponymous database software, and Sun laid out a Java road map at JavaOne.

Issue 20, Dec. 15, 2000: XML DevCon 2000 was the launching point of applications, while Microsoft and IBM got behind a new short-range wireless spec called Bluetooth.

Issue 30, May 15, 2001: Big Blue spent a cool billion dollars to buy Informix, while both the SD Expo and Embedded Systems Conferences seemed unaffected by the post-bubble tech slowdown.

Issue 40, Oct. 15, 2001: The chairman of Rogue Wave stepped down, even as Sun’s enterprise Java platform rose on its J2EE 1.3 specification. Meanwhile, Merant added a content manager to its PVCS product line.

Issue 50, March 15, 2002: TogetherSoft founder Peter Coad stepped down as CEO, Data Junction offered tools for integrating transaction-oriented applications, and Wind River demonstrated VSPWorks, a real-time operating system.

Issue 60, Aug. 15, 2002: The UML 2.0 spec was pushed back a year, and Bill Gates unveiled a new vision for the .NET platform and the C# language. WebGain, back in the news, confirmed that it was out of business.

Issue 70, Jan. 15, 2003: The Eclipse Foundation grew to 30 members and began a move into application life-cycle management. Schlumberger looked to bring .NET-based smart cards to North America.

Issue 80, June 15, 2003: Novell warned SCO Group to put up or shut up about its Unix rights, Serena Software purchased TeamShare, and a BZ Research study revealed that 34% of businesses consider Linux a “supported platform.”

Issue 90, Nov. 15, 2003: IBM’s Stinger helped DB2 work with .NET applications, and Microsoft’s PDC gave an early glimpse of Windows XP’s successor, code-named Longhorn and later called Windows Vista.

Issue 100, April 15, 2004: Colleges aren’t teaching software testing, IBM told Sun to open up its J2SE platform, Pervasive repackaged technology it had purchased from Data Junction, and Microsoft launched a Speech Server at VS Live.

Issue 110, Sept. 15, 2004: Borland reinvented itself with Project Themis, while PalmSource shed engineers in an attempt to find profitability. A broad consortium submitted WS-Addressing to the W3C.

Issue 120, Feb. 15, 2005: Sun detailed its open-source vision for Solaris, Borland promised to deliver its Core SDP software delivery platform shortly, and RFID became important for the whole supply chain.

Issue 130, July 15, 2005: Sun bought SeeBeyond to boost its SOA strategy and released more of the Java stack as open source. Sybase unveiled WorkSpace, an Eclipse-based IDE for Java and .NET applications.

Issue 140, Dec. 15, 2005: Mindreef showed Coral, a role-based collaborative environment, while the JCP offered a proposed final draft of Java EE 5. The privately held Serena Software embraced the Eclipse ALF framework.

Issue 150, June 15, 2006: Microsoft and VMware struggled for server and desktop virtualization dominance, while Sun turned in a big quarterly loss under newly promoted CEO Jonathan Schwartz.

Issue 160, Oct. 15, 2006: Borland dumped its Core SDP product line in favor of four new bundles for different phases of the application life cycle. The U.S. government named its first czar for cybersecurity: Gregory Garcia.

Issue 170, March 15, 2007: Redmond cleared deployment barriers facing Windows Vista and the Mono team tightened its ties to Redmond. After four years of lawsuits, the SCO v. IBM case appeared to be winding down.

Issue 180, Aug. 15, 2007: Microsoft pinned its hopes on Windows 7, the successor to Windows Vista. Java EE 6 began taking shape, and Intel released its Threading Building Blocks library as open source.

Issue 190, Jan. 15, 2008: The business reporting revolution began with the XRBL draft, while Coghead linked its Web application platform to Adobe Flex and Amazon Web Services.

Issue 200, June 15, 2008: Google’s I/O developer conference attracts attention because of both AppEngine and Android, Agitar CEO explains why the company failed, and Microsoft still eyes a Yahoo acquisition.

Related Search Term(s): Java, open source, software development, SOA & SaaS, Windows, Google, IBM, Microsoft, Novell, Sun

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Microsoft's plans for post-Windows OS revealed A componentized non-Windows operating system is in the works at Microsoft, one that could eventually phase out Windows. The OS features asynchronous-only architecture built for task concurrency.

Letters to the Editors: 'Midori' a fishing expedition One of our readers wasn't convinced that Microsoft's Midori was a huge deal, and he thinks that Microsoft has no real plans for it. Other readers chime in on the possible futures of multicore development.

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