Java 6 on Mac!

It has been a long time coming, but finally Apple has released Java 6 for the Mac. The download is 57MB, takes 127MB of space to install and works on OS X 10.5.2 or later. It was a simple install and after adding 1.6 to the Execution Environments for Eclipse, I am off to the races. Everything at first blush seems to be operating as expected. This should really please the Java development community after the backlash against Apple for not keeping a reasonable release cycle after Sun's releases. Whether you agree that it is Apple's responsibility or not to keep Java going on their operating systems, this comes as a welcomed release for Java developers. Thank you Apple! I hope with the OpenJDK initiative that Java 7 will not be a 2 year lag behind on Mac. The largest motivating factor that moved me to start using the Mac was that with the MacBook Pro I could run OS X, Windows, and Linux (choose your flavor) all on the same box. This allows me to more easily test our software on various platforms. This Java issue was one of the biggest disappointments I had when I made the move. I am glad that it is resolved.... for now. Happy Coding!

Cloud Computing SLA

A funny coincidence happened to me last week. Reading a ZDNet article on Cloud Computing, I felt compelled to comment and in my comment I forecasted that we will soon have SLAs in the space. The next day Amazon announced their premium support for customers on their infrastructure. With their agreements they offer "business day technical support" with their Silver level and 24x7 support with their Gold level. Amazon continues to lead in this space and it will be a long hard road for anyone to catch up. More and more applications will move to Cloud Computing because of the price point, scalability, and the ability to only pay for what you use. SaaS has been talked about and touted for several years now, but I believe we are really just starting to see it take off.

AB Tech and Heath Shuler

Today was a big day for Asheville Buncombe Technical Community College (AB Tech) and the Small Business Center that is on their campus. Our US Congressman for the 11th District in North Carolina, Heath Shuler, came to present a check for $354,240.00 to Russ Yelton and Dr. Betty Young. This money was given to be used to help deliver and innovate clean energy technologies and also to help educate people around the globe. Representative Shuler talked about the importance of the beautiful environment that we live in and our natural resources that we have. He encourages the growth of "Green" technologies coming out of the Small Business Center and Western North Carolina. We are excited that DigitalChalk software will be providing the educational arm of this grant by delivering lessons, lectures and discussons on the clean energy initiatives.

Congressman Heath Shuler

Heath Shuler, Russ Yelton, Dr. Betty Young

Russ Yelton... Lights, Camera, ACTION