About java.net

java.net is the realization of a vision of a diverse group of engineers, researchers, technologists, and evangelists at Sun Microsystems, Inc. to provide a common area for interesting conversations and innovative development projects related to Java™ technology. The community continues to grow with industry associations, software vendors, universities, and individual developers and hobbyists joining every day. As they meet, share ideas, and use the site's collaboration tools, the communities they form will uncover synergies and create new solutions that render Java technology even more valuable.

The more time and energy you have to interact with java.net community members, the more organizational exposure you'll gain. The return investment can come in a variety of ways, including the reputation you or your organization earn through leadership roles and contributions to the site and, perhaps more importantly, the market pulse and community needs you discover and leverage.

There are many benefits for individuals as well. Java technology enthusiasts can enhance their own reputation through participation and contributions to the collective community. By participating actively on java.net, members can learn from each other, discover solutions to programming challenges that already exist, find new colleagues and mentors, and have more fun with Java technology.

Get involved

There are many different ways that individuals, companies, universities, existing communities, and other organizations can become involved in java.net. This page describes the different levels of involvement possible and provides links to specific sections with more details:

• Participate as an individual
• Link your site to java.net
• Federate your site with java.net
• Host your project on java.net

Everyone is welcome to browse, listen, and observe. If you would like to participate, you will be asked to register and agree to the Terms of Participation.

Active individual participation

Individuals may choose to participate at any of a number of different levels in the java.net community: you may simply browse the top-level editorial features, RSS feeds, and weblogs; join a mailing list; actively post content (an article, weblog, or wiki); join or start a community; join a project; or even start a project:

To join a mailing list simply go to the community or project you are interested in receiving information on, and subscribe to that mailing list. You can see all projects in the Directory.

To participate in a forum simply go to the community or project you are interested in and select the forum you want from the applicable home page. You can see all projects in the Directory.

To view and comment on a weblog go to the weblog list page and select the weblog to which you would like to give feedback.

Individuals may request a weblog. Eventually we intend to provide a weblog to all who ask, but for now resources only allow us to issue a limited number.

To contribute to a wiki simply go to a community or project that has a wiki and select the wiki link from that home page. You can see all projects in the Directory.

A wiki is unlike other web sites you may be accustomed to visiting. You need to be aware that nobody controls the content, and that anyone, including you, can alter the content. Keep this in mind as you navigate any of the wikis on this site. With a click you can locate the recent changes, or you can follow links as you would on any other site. Every so often you may spot a topic that you can contribute to. Either there is a thought to add or an opinion to rebut. You will find instructions on how to edit a wiki on the site. Before editing a live page, play in the sandbox and make sure you understand the wiki style.

To contribute a Java[TM] technology tool you must submit it as part of the JavaJar project. Before transferring your executable file, you must provide a binary license (or use the generic one provided), and agree to the Terms of Participation. We also recommend that you include support materials in your package.

To contribute an article, please forward any suggestions for content you might have to . Features in java.net are not limited to traditional articles. They can be code reviews, summaries of interesting conversations, or repurposed presentations, forums, or polls. For example, you may have recently engaged in an interesting email discussion with colleagues. If you can get the permission of the other participants, presenting a capsule of the discussion can make a great feature. You can find an example of this here.

If you know of someone who is on the other side of a significant issue ("how xxxx should be implemented..."), invite them to a public debate or discussion. If you'd like to open up the discussion, we can set up a forum. We're looking for ways to interest and involve our readers in the discussion.

To join an existing project or community you will need to go to the specific community's homepage. Each community decides on how they handle membership. You can find a list of projects and communities in our Directory.

To start a new project, first browse the Directory of java.net to make sure a similar project does not already exist. Before undertaking this task please evaluate your commitment, considering the time and energy it takes to manage a successful project. Our Sponsoring a Successful Project document will help you evaluate the undertaking. If you are prepared to start a new project, then go to Request a Project for step-by-step instructions.

Link your current web site to java.net

If you have already developed a mature web site with a solid infrastructure, a well-known URL, and a vibrant community, you may simply choose to link your site to java.net.

This affiliation with java.net will give you added visibility to the Java technology community. You will be listed as a member on the java.net site. Your luminaries may also host a weblog within your selected community.

Visit the Linking to java.net page for more information on benefits and for specific instructions on how to link your site with java.net.

Federate your web site with java.net

You may want to consider federating your site with java.net if:

1. You have an already developed web site with a solid infrastructure, a well-known URL, and a vibrant community.
2. You want to leverage the enriched web services available on java.net (wikis, weblogs, CVS source tree, RSS feeds), to foster collaborative development on your site.
3. You want to make your resources available to other java.net users.

Federating with java.net gives you all the benefits of linking (above), plus further visibility within your community via cross referencing of your weblogs and wikis, forums, code forges, RSS feeds, and more.

Visit the java.net Federating page for instructions on how to federate your site with java.net.

Host a community or a project on java.net

If your organization, project or community needs an online home, or if you have an existing online home that is struggling for lack of resources, or if you have a compelling idea that would benefit from living on the java.net site and you would like to start a new project, consider moving your site to java.net or starting a new project on java.net to take advantage of the reliable, feature-rich, collaborative development infrastructure.

Existing communities that need a more reliably supported infrastructure and want to leverage the tools provided by java.net generally take this approach. Good examples are JavaGaming.org and JavaDesktop.org.

Starting a new project is easy. Just go to the Request a Project page for instructions. These instructions will also provide you with information on migrating a project or a community to java.net.

For more information on what it takes to make a community succeed, please refer to Sponsoring a Successful Project by Juan Carlos Soto.