Microsoft Java Virtual Machine

The Microsoft Java Virtual Machine is a proprietary Java Virtual Machine computer program from Microsoft. It was first made available for Internet Explorer version 3 so that users could run Java applets when browsing on the World Wide Web.

History

It won the PC Magazine Editor's choice awards in 1997 and 1998 for best Java support. In 1998 a new release included the Java Native Interface which supplemented Microsoft's proprietary Raw Native Interface (RNI) and J/Direct. Microsoft claimed to have the fastest Java implementation for Windows, although IBM also made that claim in 1999 and beat the Microsoft and Sun virtual machines in the Javaworld volacano test.

The Microsoft Java Virtual Machine was discontinued in 2001 in response to the Sun Microsystems lawsuit. Microsoft continued to offer support until December 31, 2007.

Sun vs. Microsoft settlement

In January 2001, Sun Microsystems, the creator of Java, and Microsoft settled a 1997 suit for what Sun claimed was Microsoft's improper use of Sun's Java technology. Microsoft paid Sun $20 million and the two agreed to a plan for Microsoft to phase out products that included the older version of Microsoft Java that allegedly infringed on Sun's Java copyrights and trademarks.

• Office XP Developer
• Office 2000 Developer
• Office 2000 Premium Service Release 1
• BackOffice Server 2000
• Internet Internet Security and Acceleration Server(ISA) 2000
• Internet Explorer 5.5
• Visual Studio 6 Microsoft Developer Edition
• Windows 98 and Windows ME

Microsoft elected not to include a Java virtual machine with Windows XP, so users were required to download a virtual machine when browsing in Internet Explorer.

References

• Microsoft Java home page
• Award-Winning Virtual Machine Continues to Provide Fastest, Most Integrated Java Language Support. Microsoft Press release, Dec. 7, 1998
• Darryl K. Taft - Microsoft to Junk Flagship Products, Cites Java Settlement. December 5, 2003. eWeek
• Joe Wilcox and Stephen Shankland - Microsoft's Java decision a mixed bag. cNet, July 18, 2001