SUN INKS AGREEMENT WITH
HEWLETT-PACKARD; BRINGS JAVA 3D API
ONE STEP CLOSER TO PLATFORM UBIQUITY
Easy-to-use 3D Graphics API Licensed for
Development and Deployment in the
HP-UX Operating
Environment
LOS ANGELES -- SIGGRAPH Conference --
August 11, 1999 -- Sun
Microsystems, Inc. signed a licensing
agreement with Hewlett-Packard Company to
port Java 3D TM technology to HP-UX,
bringing the API one step closer to platform
ubiquity. The Java 3D API, released in
December '98 and gaining widespread
acceptance and adoption in the market,
includes easy-to-use 3D programming
features and cross-platform functionality.
The Java 3D API is used by application
developers in fields as diverse as MCAD,
scientific visualization and gaming.
In inking the deal, Hewlett-Packard will
make the Java 3D API available on the
HP-UX platform for cross-platform, 3D
graphics application development and
deployment. With Sun and HP the top two
UNIX. workstation vendors worldwide (1),
this deal significantly expands the
installed-base of workstation users who will be
able to collaborate over the network using
Java 3D API-based applications.
"HP is committed to helping its customers
effectively harness the promise and power
of Internet-based engineering across a
range of technical markets," said Jim Zafarana,
worldwide marketing manager for HP's
Workstation Systems Division. "Licensing the
Java 3D API is another step in providing
the broadest, most advanced set of
visualization tools to our technical
customers worldwide."
The Java 3D API is already available for
the Solaris TM (SPARC TM Platform Edition)
operating environment, Windows '95,
Windows '98 and Windows NT platforms and
will soon be available for SGI's IRIX and
the HP-UX operating environment and for
Linux through the Linux Blackdown Porting
Team. The Java 3D API is licensed for
development and deployment on 95 percent
of the world's workstation market (2).
"The Java 3D API has gained considerable
momentum in the marketplace as a
cross-platform 3D visualization tool for
the networked, collaborative enterprise, as
evidenced by the API's adoption for the
Linux and IRIX platforms and now for
HP-UX," said Ken Okin, vice president and
general manager of Workstation Products
at Sun Microsystems, Inc. "Developers and
end users working on HP's
enterprise-class UNIX workstations will
now be able to natively access this
emerging standard."
The Java 3D API in Detail
The Java 3D API extends the Java 2
Platform, Standard Edition, by allowing
application developers to add 3D
capabilities to their Java technology-based
applications, while leveraging the speed,
stability, security and completeness of the
core Java platform.
The Java 3D API, a network-centric, scene
graph-based API, has been implemented
in a variety of third-party applications,
from design and scientific visualizations to
gaming and educational software programs.
In addition, because the Java 3D API is
based on the network-centric Java platform,
this 3D programming tool allows users to
do high-end 3D visualization over the
network, regardless of the target
platform. This network-centric design is increasingly
important as development environments are
becoming more collaborative and more
dependent on graphics. To reduce the
impact of potential bottlenecks caused by this
new computing environment, the Java 3D API
incorporates geometry compression
which shrinks very large 3D models to a
tenth of their original size, enabling them to
be rapidly downloaded over the network for
remote viewing and manipulation.
Since the Java 3D API was made available
in December 1998, there have been more
than 50,000 downloads. The Java 3D API is
available for free download at
http://java.sun.com/products/java-media/3D/. For more information on the
Java 3D
API, visit http://sun.com/desktop/java3d.
About Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Since its inception in 1982, a singular
vision, "The Network Is The Computer TM," has
propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ:
SUNW), to its position as a leading
provider of high quality hardware,
software and services for establishing
enterprise-wide intranets and expanding
the power of the Internet. With more than
$11.5 billion in annual revenues, Sun can
be found in more than 150 countries and on
the World Wide Web at http://sun.com.
--
Steve Pietrowicz - [EMAIL PROTECTED] Project Manager - NCSA Java 3D Group
NCSA Portfolio 1.3 beta 2: http://havefun.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Java3D/portfolio/
New Loaders, turn your Canvas3D into a JPEG, new InputDevices and more!
Freely available for non-commercial use!
You Build It VR: http://havefun.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Java3D/YouBuildItVR/
Build your own multi-user virtual worlds with no programming experience!
The Java3D FAQ: http://tintoy.ncsa.uiuc.edu/~srp/java3d/faq.html
Java News Network: http://tintoy.ncsa.uiuc.edu/~srp/java/javanews.html
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