Oracle today announced the availability of Java 20, the latest version of the world’s number one programming language and development platform. It will showcse the latest capabilities in Java 20 during the Java Developer Day currently taking place at the Oracle DevLive Level Up event, which runs March 20-23 at Redwood Shores, CA and online
Java 20 (Oracle JDK 20) delivers thousands of performance, stability, and security improvements, including platform enhancements that will help developers improve productivity and drive innovation
“For more than 25 years, Java has empowered developers to design and build the next generation of robust, scalable, and secure applications,” said Georges Saab, senior vice president of development, Java Platform and chair, OpenJDK Governing Board, Oracle.
“The innovative new enhancements in Java 20 reflect the vision and invaluable efforts the global Java community has contributed throughout Java’s existence,”
“With the support provided by Oracle’s ongoing Java technology leadership and community stewardship, Java has never been more relevant as a contemporary language and platform that helps developers improve productivity.” said Saab
JDK 20 delivers language improvements from OpenJDK project Amber (Record Patterns and Pattern Matching for Switch); enhancements from OpenJDK Project Panama to interconnect Java Virtual Machine (JVM) and native code (Foreign Function & Memory API and Vector API)
Irs’ features are related to Project Loom (Scoped Values, Virtual Threads, and Structured Concurrency), which will dramatically streamline the process of writing, maintaining, and observing high-throughput, concurrent applications.
In a stunning display of technological prowess, the latest Java Development Kit (JDK) comes brimming with seven JDK Enhancement Proposals (JEPs) that promise to revolutionize the world of programming. Each update is a masterstroke of innovation, building on the foundation of earlier releases to provide even greater functionality
Jay Lyman, senior research analyst, S&P Global Market Intelligence says organisations today face increasing pressure to use their resources as wisely and efficiently as possible, which requires developers to seek tools that streamline application development while helping ensure their organisations achieve their IT security and compliance goals.
“Digital transformation leaders say they’re more focused on improving time to market and the agility[1]that can be gained with better tools that can accelerate their organisation’s application development initiatives,” said Lyman
Oracle maintains a predictable release schedule for Java feature releases every six months, consistently introducing a stream of innovations while also making ongoing enhancements to the platform’s performance, stability, and security that contribute to the widespread adoption of Java across organisations and industries of all scales.
The most significant updates delivered in Java 20 are:
Language Updates and Improvements
· JEP 432: Record Patterns (Second Preview): Enhances the Java language by allowingusers to nest record patterns and type patterns to create a powerful, declarative, and composable form of data navigation and processing. This helps increase developer productivity by enabling them to extend pattern matching to allow for more sophisticated and composable data queries.
· JEP 433: Pattern Matching for Switch (Fourth Preview): By extending pattern matching to switch, an expression can be tested against a number of patterns – each with a specific action – so that complex data-oriented queries can be expressed concisely and safely. Expanding the expressiveness and applicability of switch expressions and statements helps increase developer productivity.
Project Loom Preview/Incubator Features
· JEP 429: Scoped Values (Incubator): Enables the sharing of immutable data within and across threads, which are preferred to thread-local variables – especially when using large numbers of virtual threads. This increases ease-of-use, comprehensibility, robustness, and performance.
· JEP 436: Virtual Threads (Second Preview): Significantly streamline the process of writing, maintaining, and observing high-throughput, concurrent applications by introducing lightweight virtual threads to the Java Platform. By enabling developers to easily troubleshoot, debug, and profile concurrent applications with existing JDK tools and techniques, virtual threads helps accelerate application development.
· JEP 437: Structured Concurrency (Second Incubator): Simplifies multithreaded programming by treating multiple tasks running in different threads as a single unit of work. This helps development teams streamline error handling and cancellation, improve reliability, and enhance observability.
Project Panama Preview Features
· JEP 434: Foreign Function & Memory API (Second Preview): Enables Java programs to interoperate with code and data outside of the Java runtime. By efficiently invoking foreign functions (i.e., code outside the Java Virtual Machine [JVM]), and by safely accessing foreign memory (i.e., memory not managed by the JVM), this feature enables Java programs to call native libraries and process native data without requiring the Java Native Interface. This increases ease-of-use, performance, and safety.
· JEP 438: Vector API (Fifth Incubator): Expresses vector computations that reliably compile at runtime to vector instructions on supported CPU architectures. This increases performance compared to equivalent scalar computations.
Along with its new enhancements, Java 20 is reinforced by the Java Management Service, a native Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) service that provides a unified interface to assist organisations in administering Java runtimes and applications, whether on-premises or on any cloud platform.
Supporting Java Customers and the Global Ecosystem – Java Universal SE Subscription
Oracle offers the Java Universal SE Subscription on a pay-as-you-go basis, which includes top-notch support services such as triage support for the entire Java portfolio, access to GraalVM Enterprise, entitlement to the Java SE Subscription Enterprise Performance Pack, and advanced features of the Java Management Service.
This subscription also allows customers to upgrade their services according to their business needs, which can help IT organisations handle complexity, manage expenses, and mitigate security risks.
Additionally, Oracle provides Oracle Java SE, GraalVM Enterprise, and the Java SE Subscription Enterprise Performance Pack at no cost on OCI, enabling developers to create and deploy applications with superior speed, performance, and cost-effectiveness on the Oracle Cloud platform.
Java 20 was developed through a widespread collaboration effort between Oracle engineers and members of the global Java developer community, facilitated by OpenJDK and the Java Community Process (JCP).
