Steve On Java

Next week I will be giving two talks on JavaFX at Devoxx in Belgium.  The first is a university session on Tuesday at 13:30 called The JavaFX Platform – A Java Developer’s Guide.  The second is a technical session on Thursday at 14:00 entitled Pro Javafx – Developing Enterprise Applications.

Leading up to both these sessions I will post a question via the LearnFX application.  To win a prize, all you have to do is:

1. Answer the question correctly using the LearnFX client (see below)
2. Come to the next Devoxx session I am speaking at
3. Winners will be selected by a random drawing from all the correct responses

Here is the LearnFX client displaying the first question.  To run it, make sure that you have a recent version (update 14 or later) of Java SE 6, and simply click on the launch button:

Please don’t ruin this for others by mentioning the answer!

The prizes include several copies of Pro JavaFX Platform and a limited edition WidgetFX T-Shirt.  I don’t know about you, but I know which prize I would pick:

WidgetFX Limited run T-Shirt - original artwork by Keith Combs (WidgetFX Developer)

There will also be an opportunity for audience members to answer simply by using a laptop or mobile Twitter client (more details on this at the start of the session), so you don’t have to respond in advance to win.

Thanks to Jim Weaver for the excellent LearnFX application, and I look forward to seeing you at my Devoxx talks!

All this week my co-author Dean Iverson and I will be fielding JavaFX questions on the Java Ranch.  Drop by and ask a few questions yourself and you may win a free copy of the Pro JavaFX Platform book!

The promotion ends this Friday in case you are interested in participating.

I was the very first person to buy an HTC Diamond at JavaOne.  (Jacob Lehrbaum probably thought he was about to be mugged as I stalked him into the Java Store.)  It worked out great for my presentations, but I had to tip-toe around some issues that showed up only on applications deployed to the phone.

However, the latest JavaFX 1.2 EA release is ready for primetime!  The installation was a breeze and all of the JavaFX applications I have tried on it so far have worked great.  This includes:

• Hello Earthrise – Starter application from the Pro JavaFX book
• DrawJFX – Draw on your phone using the touchscreen, also from the Pro JavaFX book
• Nabaztag widget – I demonstrated this at JavaOne; now is your chance to impress your co-workers with silly bunny tricks

Hello Earthrise on the HTC Diamond

Here is what to like about the latest JavaFX Mobile release running on the HTC Diamond:

• Excellent resolution – It takes advantage of the native 480×640 resolution of the Diamond HTC device, allowing for some very detailed graphics.
• Improved performance – Startup time and application performance are orders of magnitude faster than with JavaFX 1.1.
• Some cool demo apps – TwitterFX Mobile takes the cake as the most interesting and useful app, and is bundled with the JavaFX 1.2 EA Release. Kudos to Liang Zhu and Jungeun Woo on the port and Steven Herod on inventing TwitterFX!
• Available for download – Unlike previous JavaFX Mobile releases, which were Sun internal or pre-installed on a device, this is a free download from the JavaFX website.  While it is only officially supported on the HTC Diamond and LG Incite, it reportedly works on other Windows Mobile devices, such as the XPeria X1.

If you have a Windows Mobile 6 or 6.1 device available, it is definitely worth giving this early access release a try.  Who knows, your JavaFX applications may already be mobile ready!