SAN FRANCISCO: The Milestone Release (MR2) of the phoneME Feature project will hit the market soon to facilitate the creation of graphically rich and compelling entertainment, business, and social networking mobile applications.

Announcing this recently, Sun Microsystems, disclosed the immediate availability of the MR2 in the open source Mobile & Embedded Community. The striking features of the MR2 include a high performance implementation of Java bindings for the OpenGL(R) ES API, which provides access to high-end 3D graphic functionality on the device. In addition to this, Sun also announced updates on the evolution of the Mobile & Embedded Community, including new projects around Web 2.0/Ajax, Scalable Vector Graphics(SVG), Blu-ray Disc and digital TV and developer best practices.

The phoneME Feature project source code forms the basis of Sun's commercial products-the Sun Java Wireless Client and the Connected Limited Device Configuration (CLDC) HotSpot Implementation-targeted for mainstream mobile devices.

The Sun Java Wireless Client enables Sun licensees to develop Mobile Service Architecture (MSA) based devices. MSA is the next generation application platform which enables access to most of the native capabilities of mobile devices such as location, enhanced camera support, Bluetooth, personal information and file management, payment, internationalization, security and Session Initiation Protocol (SIP).

"With the technology converging constantly and increased number of participants joining the 'network', the demand for new consumer applications continues to increase. Developer participation in the Mobile & Embedded Community will help drive new innovations in Java technology, bring more Java software-based applications to market faster and lead to reduced fragmentation across the entire industry," said Laurie Tolson, vice president, Client Software Group at Sun.

Since its inception in November of 2006, the open source Mobile & Embedded Community has gained great traction with mobile developers worldwide. Already, the Mobile & Embedded Community has over 60 active projects (including five projects from Sun) and more than 1,700 forum postings from more than 450 active members. In addition, several community-driven ports of phoneME have already been developed for WinCE/Windows Mobile and Nokia N770/N800, with additional embedded platforms under investigation.

Mobile & Embedded Community Momentum

In addition to today's updates to the phoneME project, the Mobile & Embedded community also includes several new projects:

cq3G:
A portable, configurable, automated test suite for verifying a Java technology-enabled device's compliance with the Global System for Mobile Communications North America (GSMNA) technical recommendations.

Demo Box project:
Live demos and sample applications including showing real world examples of mobile applications utilizing Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) and other Java technologies. In addition, the Demo Box project includes sub-projects with ready-to-use code around user interface, graphics, mobile web 2.0 and more all available under the BSD license.

Developer Best Practices project:
Design guidelines initially created in a Sun and Orange collaborative effort to openly define and develop best practices for Java Platform Micro Edition application development. These Best Practices guidelines are now available for the Mobile & Embedded Community to further collaborate, evolve and extend.

Blu-Dahlia:
A Java Users Group for developers of Blu-ray Disc Java (BD-J) software applications and other Globally Executable MHP (GEM) platforms, including OpenCable Application Platform (OCAP), Advanced Common Application Platform (ACAP), Multimedia Home Platform (MHP) and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV). This project will provide a forum for developers to exchange ideas, share best practices and otherwise participate in the rapidly growing industry targeting Java platform-based Blu-ray devices and set-top boxes.

HD Cookbook Project:
Contributed code samples and frameworks from Sun Microsystems to help the authoring and content development communities of BD-J platform and other interactive television platforms based on Globally Executable MHP (GEM) platforms, including OCAP, ACAP, MHP, and IPTV.

Project Orbit:
A collaboration between Sun Microsystems and Laszlo Systems, Inc. to enable OpenLaszlo applications to run on devices supporting the Java ME platform. OpenLaszlo is one of the leading Rich Internet Application development platforms, integrating XML and JavaScript technology to create dynamic Web 2.0 applications.