Josh On Design

A lot has happened since I last blogged. The JFXStudio hit 33k hits with 50 posts, I've started working on a new secret project built with JavaFX, and we had a rockin' booth at SXSW last week. I'll cover SXSW and our new party app in another blog soon. First things first: Developer Challenges!

Mega Challenge

Sun is launching a JavaFX Coding Challenge where the top prize is $25,000. It starts March 23rd and goes until just before JavaOne (May 29th). Sadly I cannot enter as I will be judging the contest along with a few other engineers and Mr. Java, James Gosling himself. I've been eagerly awaiting this competition because I want to see crazy things people do with JavaFX technology. And a note to students, there is a special category just for registered college students with it's own prize. So go sign up today.

Micro Challenge

But of course, what better way to celebrate a big challenge than with a little challenge. JFXStudio.org is announcing a mini developer contest. You can win one of three eBook alpha release copies of the great new JavaFX book: Pro JavaFXâ„¢ Platform: Script, Desktop and Mobile RIA with Javaâ„¢ Technology , written by Jim Weaver, Weiqi Gao, Stephen Chin, and Dean Iverson.

There are three categories in our micro challenge: visual creativity (looks cool), technical skill, (great speed, fantastic coding, etc.) and most innovative idea (the craziest thing we've ever seen). Ah, but there's a catch. Your submission must fit the theme word: orange.

orange?

Yes, orange. It's entirely up to you how to interpret orange. It could be the color, the fruit, or simply the word itself. It's up to you. But it must be orange. So the rules are simple: it must fit the theme and it must be a JavaFX app runnable as webstart from your server. The code must be entirely yours, though you can reuse existing open source libraries and Creative Commons licensed content (music, video, photos, etc.). To enter just email your JNLP link to joshua.marinacci@sun.com with the subject line: JFXStudio Challenge. The contest starts immediately and ends at midnight PST Sunday, March 29th. We will announce the winners and post all submissions to www.jfxstudio.org a week later.

And now, here it is, your moment of zen:

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