A number of different technologies exist for building distributed client/server applications on the Web.

JAVA:
Java is an object-oriented programming language developed by Sun Microsystems. The Java language was designed to be small, simple, and portable across platforms and operating systems, both at the source and at the binary level, which means that Java programs (applets and applications) can run on any machine that has the Java Virtual Machine.

Java is usually mentioned in the context of the World Wide Web. Java enabled browsers can download and play Java programs, called applets. Applets are programs that are downloaded from the Internet by a Web browser and run inside an HTML Web page. You'll need a Java-enabled browser such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft's Internet Explorer to run applets.

The rise of server-side Java applications is one of the latest and most exciting trends in Java programming. Businesses in particular have been quick to recognize Java's potential on the server-Java is inherently suited for large client/server applications. The cross platform nature of Java is extremely useful for organizations that have a heterogeneous collection of servers running various flavors of the Unix and Windows operating systems. Java's modern, object-oriented, memory-protected design allows developers to cut development cycles and increase reliability. In addition, Java's built-in support for networking and enterprise APIs provides access to legacy data, easing the transition from older client/server systems. Java servlets are a key component of server-side Java development. A servlet is a small, pluggable extension to a server that enhances the server's functionality.

DCOM:
Microsoft's Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) currently is completely available only on two operating systems: Windows95/98 and Windows NT 4. Microsoft is working with third-party vendors to port DCOM to other operating systems. DCOM is defined and controlled by a single vendor (Microsoft), which reduces the options the DCOM developer can choose from when working (tools and features, for example). DCOM's limited platform support limits the reuse of legacy code and also places limitations on the scalability of DCOM applications. Writing an applications to access DCOM objects from a server by definition forces the developer to limit the supported client software to Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser and the Windows95/98 NT platforms. This restriction, of course, limits the usefulness of applications placed on the Web. On the flip side, DCOM has the biggest of all advantages in that it is free to the Microsoft Windows95/NT user.

CORBA:
CORBA is a specification that defines how distributed objects can interoperate. The actual CORBA specification is controlled by the Object Management Group (OMG), an open consortium of more than 700 companies (including my employer) that work together to define open standards for object computing. CORBA objects can be written in any programming language supported by a CORBA software manufacturer such as C, C++, Java, Ada, or Smalltalk. These objects can also exist on any platform that is supported by a CORBA software manufacturer such as Solaris, Windows 95/NT, OpenVMS, Digital Unix, HP-UX, and AIX, among others. Language independence is made possible via the construction of interfaces to objects using the Interface Description Language (IDL). IDL allows all CORBA objects to be described in the same manner; the only requirement is a "bridge" between the native language (C/C++, DELPHI, Java) and IDL. CORBA objects communicate with each other using an Object Request Broker (ORB) as an intermediary, and can communicate over many popular networking protocols (such as TCP/IP or IPX/SPX). ORBs from different vendors communicate over TCP/IP using the Internet Inter-Orb Protocol (IIOP), which is part of the CORBA 2.0 standard.

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