WWW: Beyond the Basics

21. Java

21.4 JavaOS

JavaOS is a small and efficient operating environment developed by JavaSoft that allows Java applications to run directly on hardware platforms without requiring a host operating system. The goal of JavaOS is to enable the development of secure, high performance, and highly robust, intelligent, and dynamic network devices built on multiple hardware platforms in heterogeneous, distributed networks. JavaOS is currently targeted at systems such as intranet terminals for enterprise desktops, consumer Internet computers suitable for Web surfing, and embedded devices where hardware resources are even more restricted. For example, devices having only 1 - 2 MB of RAM and 1 - 2 MB of ROM, set-top boxes, PDA's and even electronic devices without any graphical display. One of the best ways of reducing a device's hardware requirements is to remove the overhead caused by requiring a host operating system.

  • Java with a Host Operating System
  • Java without a Host Operating System
  • In order to meet the goal of providing Java Platform without a host operating system, one has to perform the following tasks:

    Figure 2: JavaOS architecture

    Figure 2 shows a high-level view of the JavaOS architecture. As in Figure 1, the most important line in this diagram is the line that defines the Java API. Above that line all Java programs and applets are platform independent. The API is the same on all platforms no matter what underlying operating system or hardware is. The API supported by JavaOS is implemented by the exact same packages of classes written in the Java programming language.

  • Performance
  • Advantages of JavaOS
  • The following advantages of using JavaOS are claimed in JavaSoft's white paper about JavaOS.

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    Copyright 1996 Guowei Huang, All Rights Reserved

    Guowei Huang <ghuang@csgrad.cs.vt.edu>
    Last modified: Sun Nov 24 11:50:05 1996