In the survey, conducted last week by Borland International, Inc., (NASDAQ:BORL) nearly all respondents said they plan to utilize Java to build new applications and systems and/or integrate with existing systems (95%). However, developers said the evolution and adoption of Java has been slowed by the performance of applications written in existing tools (31%) and the lack of robust, reliable development tools (25%), listing these as the top two barriers to Java adoption. Other obstacles cited by developers include: lack of consistent virtual machines/true platform independence, and a lack of acceptable database connectivity.

"There has been a tremendous amount of discussion about whether Java will fully live up to its promise," said Delbert W. Yocam, Borland's chairman and chief executive officer. "Based on our research and discussions with corporate developers, we are confident Java will play a central role in the future of application development and in enterprise business computing." According to the survey, 48 percent of respondents said they plan to use Java to develop client /server applications and 38 percent plan to build enterprise multi-tier systems. Eighty percent of respondent said they plan to build applications that access corporate databases.

Platform independence or the "write once, run anywhere" concept is of major importance to developers, with 61 percent of survey respondents citing it as the number one benefit of Java. Other benefits cited by respondents included: ease of application deployment and delivery and Java's server-side capabilities. "As we identified earlier this year when we unveiled our information network or 'Information Network' strategy, interest in Java stems from a belief that to stay competitive in the future, businesses must provide employees, customers and partners with greater access to information and applications -- irrespective of platform," Yocam said. "However, contrary to popular assumption, developers do not view Java in the context of platform wars. What developers believe is needed to move to the next phase in the evolution of Java are real industrial strength development tools and better standards," Yocam added.

"We initiated this survey out of a sense that developer's voices needed to be heard and understood as we prepared for the next phase in the evolution of Java. But even we were surprised at the level at the response we received. Developers called us and they e-mailed us. They made it clear that they want Java, but need good standards and more powerful tools. They also want the discussions about Java to center on issues that are important to their businesses."

The results of the survey were announced today as part of the official unveiling of Borland JBuilder, the first industrial strength Java development tool.

"To date, Java development clearly has been limited to building Web applets and tire-kicking," noted Dr. Rick LeFaivre, Borland's vice president of research & development and chief technology officer. "The good news is, that with the delivery of products like JBuilder, we are entering into a wave of second generation Java tools that give developers the ability to begin recognizing the true vision of Java, building platform independent, distributed applications.

"We see tremendous potential for Java development in enterprise computing environments. Our customers have expressed strong interest in using Java to build server-based applications, where true heterogeneous environments exist and where Java's platform independent capabilities truly shine," said LeFaivre.

What Developers Want In New Java Tools
Most developers who participated in the survey said they are evaluating various new Java tools and haven't yet committed to one specific tool. Fifty-four percent of respondents said they are evaluating all tools, while 37 percent said they are currently using a Java tool, but continue to evaluate new tools. Only eight percent said they are already committed to a specific development tool.

Developers said they want tools which are built to the latest technical standards and that have been tested and qualify as "100% pure Java" platform-independent applications, with respondents citing this as the most important feature in a Java development tool. Other features desired by developers include: pure Java visual development, complete JDBC database connectivity, robust JavaBean component library and easy creation and sharing of JavaBeans components.

Borland: Making Development Easier
Borland International, Inc. is a leading provider of high-quality software products for software application developers worldwide. Borland is distinguished for its award-winning family of rapid application development tools and scalable middleware technology for desktop, client/server, Internet/intranet, and enterprise systems. The Company's products are supported through comprehensive corporate and independent developer programs, value added resellers, and systems integrators. Founded in 1983, Borland is headquartered in Scotts Valley, California.

Java, JavaSoft, JavaBeans, JDK and JDBC are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the US and other countries. Borland product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of Borland International, Inc. Other product names mentioned herein may be trademarks of the party using such names.