As you have probably already heard, Google and Sun have partnered up
to distribute the Google Toolbar with Sun's Java.
While this may seem like a minor deal in the grand scheme
of things, upon further reflection I find this could
be the deal which will ultimately break Microsoft.
While the implications could be huge and far reaching,
only Google knows for sure what it wants. We can
speculate however and that s what this article is all
about. Is such a deal good for Sun (and Google)
or is it a pact with the devil?
At first glance, such a deal doesn't seem like much.
After all java to most people is just a plug in for
your Internet browser. What good would such a
deal be to Google? Well lets take a look at what
Java can do. The following is taken straight from
Sun's website:
The Java programming language is robust and versatile,
enabling developers to:
-
Write software
on one platform and run it on another.
-
Create programs
to run within a web browser.
-
Develop server-side
applications for online forums, stores, polls, processing
HTML forms, and more.
-
Write applications
for cell phones, two-way pagers, and other consumer
devices.
Let me break this
down for you point by point:
Write software on one platform and run it on another
To me this says it all platform independent applications.
What is one thing Windows does well? The programs
generally run only on Windows. Developers usually
have to port applications to run on other operating
systems like Mac or Linux. But an application
built on Java can be run on any platform regardless
of the architecture.
Create programs to run within a web browser
This is an area Google lacks in somewhat. Sure
they own search and have some great web based applications
such as Gmail, but there are so many potential other
web based applications out there. From web based
collaboration software to web based application suites
(such as office applications). The possibilities
are endless.
Develop server side applications
Again, since Java is platform independent, different
types of server applications can be built for websites
regardless of their operating system. An E-commerce
system could be developed which would easily plug into
a website whether it was ASP or PHP based. This
would be a huge competitive advantage for Google.
Write applications for...consumer devices
Portable web is the future. There is no doubt
about it. Rather than building multiple platform
dependent applications, one could again develop a java
based platform independent application. Since
it's independent it can not only run on your desktop
or within your web browser but also your cell phone,
blackberry or PDA.
So, now that we know what Java can do, lets take a look
at what Google can do with Java:
Compete on the Desktop
Virtually any application could be ported from it's
current Windows based version to a platform independent
Java version. Even current Google applications
like Picasa and Google Earth could now be available
to non-Windows users.
Obviously, there is a potential to compete with current
Microsoft products as well. The first that comes
to mind is Microsoft Office. One would expect
this to be one of the first areas Google moves into.
Imagine the potential though. I think of how good
that would be just for me personally. My computer
runs Fedora (a version of Redhat Linux) yet for other
reasons (games) my son s computer runs Windows XP.
When he needs help with homework it can be trying because
he uses Microsoft software and I use open source.
If we could collaborate on something which doesn't care
what OS it runs on, it would make our lives so much
easier.
And that leads to my next point collaboration.
Compete with future Microsoft products
One thing Microsoft has been getting better at, but
is still lagging in, is online collaboration.
Sure they have Exchange Server and Sharepoint, but those
systems are somewhat cumbersome and don't always play
together nicely.
But imagine a system which is (again) platform independent
and web based and allows collaboration among multiple
users from different areas using a shared application
base. The system could incorporate version control
for shared documents, as well as calendaring, email
and other communications.
This system could be hosted by Google (of course) but
be open to who you want. In other words, you could
openly collaborate with clients, or co workers regardless
of what system you are using, you could connect and
read email with your PDA, schedule appointments with
your laptop and even have a Google Talk VOIP conversation
with your cell phone. The possibilities are endless.
Take Over the Desktop
To go even a step further, what if Google built a small
lightweight version of Linux that hosts links to web
based versions of the Java applications. You could
then have this light Google Linux stored on a USB device.
That way, no matter what computer you use, you could
reboot it into the USB version of Google s Desktop and
have all your customizations and settings just like
you would at home or the office.
You could borrow your neighbors laptop or even go to
the local Internet cafe and reboot into Glinux
to read email, respond to appointments and even have
a virtual conference via Google IM.
Again, depending on how aggressive Google wants to be
(and I bet you they are very aggressive) Google could
become a viable alternative to Microsoft. And
not just Microsoft applications but Microsoft as a whole.
Google could take over the desktop (or at least temporarily
supplant it) as well as any MS based application.
This is the true power of the deal today. While
it make take months or years to see the first
real Google/Sun java application, I do expect
to see them taking aim at Microsoft and what it has
accomplished.
Because this is still all in line with Google s mission
of making the worlds information universally accessible.
All I can say is I hope Bill Gates has a big enough
war chest because he's going to need it.
About
the author:
Rob Sullivan - SEO Specialist and Internet Marketing
Consultant. Any reproduction of this article needs to
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