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Sun to show peer-to-peer software

Sun Microsystems on Wednesday will formally unveil Project Juxtapose, the peer-to-peer software called Jxta Sun described in February as part of its ongoing battle to undermine Microsoft. In February, Sun said it planned to release the software as an open-source project, meaning anyone would be able to use and modify the software at no charge. Monday, the company said it will give an initial view of the software and describe the company's plans for it. Peer-to-peer software connects one computer to another directly, enabling operations that don't rely on larger server computers. The poster child of peer-to-peer services has been online music-swapping site Napster, but other companies are hoping to capitalize on the concept as well. Sun exhorted programmers to incorporate the open-source Jxta software into their own peer-to-peer projects. Standardizing peer-to-peer plumbing would diminish the importance of Microsoft's Windows operating system and its .Net server products.

Stephen Shankland Former Principal Writer
Stephen Shankland worked at CNET from 1998 to 2024 and wrote about processors, digital photography, AI, quantum computing, computer science, materials science, supercomputers, drones, browsers, 3D printing, USB, and new computing technology in general. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces. His first big scoop was about radioactive cat poop.
Expertise Processors, semiconductors, web browsers, quantum computing, supercomputers, AI, 3D printing, drones, computer science, physics, programming, materials science, USB, UWB, Android, digital photography, science. Credentials
  • Shankland covered the tech industry for more than 25 years and was a science writer for five years before that. He has deep expertise in microprocessors, digital photography, computer hardware and software, internet standards, web technology, and more.
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Stephen Shankland
Sun Microsystems on Wednesday will formally unveil Project Juxtapose, the peer-to-peer software called Jxta Sun described in February as part of its ongoing battle to undermine Microsoft. In February, Sun said it planned to release the software as an open-source project, meaning anyone would be able to use and modify the software at no charge. Monday, the company said it will give an initial view of the software and describe the company's plans for it.

Peer-to-peer software connects one computer to another directly, enabling operations that don't rely on larger server computers. The poster child of peer-to-peer services has been online music-swapping site Napster, but other companies are hoping to capitalize on the concept as well. Sun exhorted programmers to incorporate the open-source Jxta software into their own peer-to-peer projects. Standardizing peer-to-peer plumbing would diminish the importance of Microsoft's Windows operating system and its .Net server products.