Paul Krill
Editor at Large

Sun uses game to tout JavaFX

news
May 1, 20092 mins

The online campaign virally promotes Sun's JavaFX by having players use the rich media software platform to solve a mystery

Sun Microsystems is making a game out of promoting its JavaFX rich media application technology.

The company is sponsoring an “alternate reality” online game, PIE (Paranormal Investigation Experts) Theory to spark interest in JavaFX. The game is similar  to “The X Files” TV show and is found at pietheory.com. The site was built using JavaFX.

[ Sun believes that JavaFX can take on AJAX and Silverlight. ]

“It’s basically a basically a massive, multiplayer viral campaign,” said Kim Celestre, senior group marketing manager for Java outbound marketing at Sun. Featured are two characters who are paranormal investigators looking to solve a mystery.

To participate, players download a recruitment kit that includes the JavaFX SDK and the NetBeans IDE. Players need to use the SDK as part of the game, using it, for example, to find a password. Participants either already have developer skills or find assistance from someone who does, Celestre explained.

Begun March 14, the game continues until June. Sun does not have figures on how many people have downloaded the recruitment kit.

Sun representatives could not say how JavaFX itself might be affected by Oracle’s planned purchase of Sun, announced last week. Oracle, though, has stressed that the Sun-created Java technology will be a strong asset and that continued investment is planned in it.

Paul Krill

Paul Krill is editor at large at InfoWorld. Paul has been covering computer technology as a news and feature reporter for more than 35 years, including 30 years at InfoWorld. He has specialized in coverage of software development tools and technologies since the 1990s, and he continues to lead InfoWorld’s news coverage of software development platforms including Java and .NET and programming languages including JavaScript, TypeScript, PHP, Python, Ruby, Rust, and Go. Long trusted as a reporter who prioritizes accuracy, integrity, and the best interests of readers, Paul is sought out by technology companies and industry organizations who want to reach InfoWorld’s audience of software developers and other information technology professionals. Paul has won a “Best Technology News Coverage” award from IDG.

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