Total Eclipse In Java Development

Eclipse's independent structure stands in sharp relief to that of another major software standardization and community-building effort: the Java Community Process. Sun Microsystems is moving toward open-sourcing Java, but for now, it owns copyrights and code and retains final say over Java decisions—a structure some JCP participants grumble renders the group's decision-making process too slow and autocratic.

"The simple fact is that Eclipse is truly an open community," Main said. "You sit at the board meetings and there's 20 representatives from 20 companies, and we're all equal in talking about our opinions. IBM's influence in Eclipse is still large, and they produce a tremendous amount of the software that comes out of Eclipse, but they have one vote. Ask Dave Thomson if he always gets his way."

Does he? IBM's Thomson cracks up at the question. "I don't think there's been anything we were fundamentally opposed to," he hedged.

Eclipse has wooed most of the industry into its fold, but one high-profile holdout remains: Sun. To the frustration of many Java devotees, Java's creator has a frosty relationship with the organization steering Java's most popular development platform. Sun's commitment to NetBeans, its own open-source IDE, and oft-stated concerns about IBM's stake in Eclipse keep it outside the fold. The two sides have held occasional negotiations over the years, but Eclipse Foundation Executive Director Mike Milinkovich said there's no sign of a thaw.

That frustrates Eclipse participants who long for Sun's blessing and contributions. "Sun has great stuff," Instantiations' Taylor said. "If they would bring it to the party, we could be even stronger as a group against the true competitor, Microsoft."

But Eclipse has plenty of other plans as it heads into its fifth year. In June, the organization celebrated a major milestone with Callisto, its first coordinated release of 10 major project updates. The synchronized update schedule makes it easier for Eclipse's partners to plan their own software releases around a more unified Eclipse road map. Next June's Europa release train is already on the tracks.

Spotlighting the platform's diversity is another of the Eclipse Foundation's goals for the year. Eclipse is best known for its Java tooling, but it also supports robust projects for alternative niches like PHP and mobile device software projects. The relatively new Rich Client Platform is a much-buzzed-about toolset, one that was used to construct NASA's Mars Rover launch vehicle.

And, of course, Eclipse and its users will continue spreading the gospel of the platform's competitive advantages. Robert Day, vice president of marketing at embedded software developer LynuxWorks, became an evangelist after LynuxWorks ditched Visual Studio for the less-expensive, more elegant Eclipse. The move enabled the San Jose, Calif., solution provider to redistribute development resources from IDE hacking to building more products for its customers.

"I'm passionate about Eclipse. It's nice that something open and community-driven can come on the scene and take off in an industry that's as commercial and competitive as ours often is," Day said. "In the many years I've been doing this, nothing like this has ever happened before."