Count your blessings!

[Paul D. Anderson]

If you think it is difficult to persuade Walter to adopt your latest idea for improved syntax or new language features -- try getting a change into Java.

JavaOne 2009 is just concluded. The Java community is moving toward release of JDK 7. It's overdue and underwhelming. Project Coin (http://openjdk.java.net/projects/coin/) exists "to determine what set of small language changes should be added to JDK 7". Joe Darcy (http://blogs.sun.com/darcy/) is the lead on Project Coin. He has posted the slides for his presentation at JavaOne: http://blogs.sun.com/darcy/resource/JavaOne/J1_2009-TS-4060.pdf.

A couple of quick impressions:

1. The list of changes is small and shrinking. Only five will make the cut.

2. Many of the requested syntax changes already exist in D. (Of course.)

3. He explains (repeatedly) the amount of work required to make a "small" change. This is the primary justification for the shortness of the list.

4. His stance with regard to changes is this: Don't explain why a change shouldn't be kept out ("It's trivial.", "Everybody does it.", "It's intuitive."), but rather why it should be put in. Give a clear statement of what's proposed, how to implement it, and a list of reasons why it should be included.

There are some lessons for us there, I think. (I don't mean to criticize anyone or any suggestions that have been made. Just to point out some of the things we all ought to consider. And to remind us that having a forum where we can discuss changes and have them considered by a lot of intelligent, interested people is a rare thing.)

Paul


Paul