MENLO PARK, Calif., Jan. 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sun Microsystems Inc. , the creator and leading advocate of Java(TM) technology, today announced the availability of the much anticipated Sun Java(TM) Studio Creator 2 application development tool, providing developers a comprehensive and easy to use environment for visually developing and deploying Web applications.

Building on the overwhelming success of the original Java Studio Creator software, this version based on the latest NetBeans(TM) Integrated Development Environment (IDE) provides ground-breaking enhancements that will help ease development of 100% Java standards-based applications with minimal learning curve for developers using existing visual Web development tools. Included in these enhancements are a drag-and-drop environment for Web application and portlet development, the ability to reduce development time by promoting code reuse using a more comprehensive set of JavaServer(TM) Faces technology components, and simplified access to heterogeneous data types. Also included in the latest edition are sample applications which will promote quality through best practices and a new component library that offers support for emerging technologies and architectures including AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML).

"As we enter the Participation Age, the requirement for developers to provide richer Web experiences to attract increasingly Web savvy audiences only continues to grow. And today's 4.5 million Java developers are increasingly looking for more advanced development tools to make that process easier without locking them in to proprietary technologies," said John Loiacono, Executive Vice President, Software, Sun Microsystems. "With today's announcement, Sun is further demonstrating our commitment to this community by delivering Java Studio Creator 2, the leader in building standard Java applications with advanced features like AJAX-enabled components, while still maintaining an incredible level of ease-of-use."

The free download of Sun Java Studio Creator 2 comes complete with everything you need to get started including the latest Sun Java System Application Server Platform Edition, a local database for use with sample applications, and a free membership to the Sun Developer Network program providing users valuable access to tutorials, articles, forums and more.

Additional Enhancements to the Sun Java Studio Creator 2 include: -- New NetBeans IDE 4.1 base provides version control support, code refactoring and improved support for ANT based projects -- New JavaServer Faces technology components and code clips, allowing developers to build richer Web application interfaces and AJAX-style applications -- Support for visual design of JSR-168 (a specification to enable interoperability between Java portlets and Web portals) standard portlet applications deployable to the Sun Java System Portal Server and any standard portlet container -- HTML page import allows developers to add application logic to an existing page's visual presentation -- A graphical Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) Editor allows developers to edit project style classes and themes to provide customized and consistent look-and-feel across Web applications

As part of the Solaris(TM) Enterprise System, the Sun Java Studio Creator 2 is available at no cost and runs on the world's most advanced operating system, the Solaris Operating System, as well as Windows, Mac and Linux. It is available now in a multi-lingual format, and available for free download at: http://developers.sun.com/jscreator .

About Sun Microsystems, Inc.

A singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer"(TM) -- guides Sun in the development of technologies that power the world's most important markets. Sun's philosophy of sharing innovation and building communities is at the forefront of the next wave of computing: the Participation Age. Sun can be found in more than 100 countries and on the Web at http://sun.com/

NOTE: Sun, Sun Microsystems, the Sun logo, Java, JavaServer, JavaScript, Solaris, NetBeans, and The Network Is The Computer are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Shoshana Deutschkron Bite Communications for Sun Microsystems 415-365-0394 shoshana.deutschkron@bitepr.com Contact: allpress@sun.com (415) 365-0462

CONTACT: Shoshana Deutschkron of Bite Communications, +1-415-365-0394,
or shoshana.deutschkron@bitepr.com, for Sun Microsystems

Web site: http://sun.com/