Java Strengths

Java is an excellent programming language. For most programming it's better than older programming languages like C or C++.ProductivityThe top reason Java has become popular is because of the increased productivity of Java programmers. It is claimed, and my experience is in agreement, that Java programmers have about double the productivity of C/C++ programmers.

GUI
Java a good, portable library for a Graphical User Interface (GUI). Most programming languages supply only a text mode interface.

Internet
Java lets you easily use the Internet. Most languages were designed before the Internet was born!

Portability
Java programs can run on many different machines (Intel, Sparc, PowerPC, ...) and many different operating systems (Windows, Unix, Macintosh, ...). You can move a C program if it is written very carefully, but it is usually difficult or impossible. In contrast, it easy to move most Java programs.

Reliability
Java programs are more reliable because Java doesn't have very dangerous things like C/C++'s pointer arithmetic. Java also checks array bounds and other error-prone operations. Memory management is much safer because Java does automatic garbage collection.

Libraries
Java has a very large number of packages which extend the language. Therefore it is unnecessary to call the operating system directly.

OOP
Object-oriented programming features (inheritance, encapsulation, and polymorphism) make many programs, especially large programs, easier to write.

Large Programs
Java supports large programming projects with object-oriented programming, packages, and components (JavaBeans).

Java History

James Gosling initiated the Java language project in June 1991 for use in one of his many set-top box projects. The language, initially called Oak after an oak tree that stood outside Gosling's office, also went by the name Green and ended up later renamed as Java, from a list of random words. Gosling aimed to implement a virtual machine and a language that had a familiar C/C++ style of notation.Sun released the first public implementation as Java 1.0 in 1995. It promised "Write Once, Run Anywhere" (WORA), providing no-cost run-times on popular platforms. Fairly secure and featuring configurable security, it allowed network- and file-access restrictions. Major web browsers soon incorporated the ability to run secure Java applets within web pages, and Java quickly became popular. With the advent of Java 2 (released initially as J2SE 1.2 in December 1998), new versions had multiple configurations built for different types of platforms. For example, J2EE targeted enterprise applications and the greatly stripped-down version J2ME for mobile applications. J2SE designated the Standard Edition. In 2006, for marketing purposes, Sun renamed new J2 versions as Java EE, Java ME, and Java SE, respectively.In 1997, Sun Microsystems approached the ISO/IEC JTC1 standards body and later the Ecma International to formalize Java, but it soon withdrew from the process. Java remains a de facto standard, controlled through the Java Community Process. At one time, Sun made most of its Java implementations available without charge, despite their proprietary software status. Sun generated revenue from Java through the selling of licenses for specialized products such as the Java Enterprise System. Sun distinguishes between its Software Development Kit (SDK) and Runtime Environment (JRE) (a subset of the SDK); the primary distinction involves the JRE's lack of the compiler, utility programs, and header files.On 13 November 2006, Sun released much of Java as free and open source software under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). On 8 May 2007 Sun finished the process, making all of Java's core code free and open-source, aside from a small portion of code to which Sun did not hold the copyright.