Changes in CORBA Features Between J2SE 1.3 and 1.4

This release of the Java^TM 2 Platform, Standard Edition (J2SE), incorporates some changes to Java IDL and RMI-IIOP as a result of changes in the CORBA specification. The changes are outlined below. URLs for the CORBA Specification are subject to change. If the links are broken when you read this, link to http://www.omg.org, and search the specifications.
See Official Specifications for CORBA support in J2SE 1.4 for information on how Java IDL and RMI-IIOP comply with the CORBA Specifications.

Portable Object Adaptor
Among other things, the Portable Object Adaptor, or POA, allows programmers to construct object implementations that are portable between different ORB products. For more information on the POA, read the CORBA/IIOP 2.3.1 Specification, Chapter 11, The Portable Object Adaptor, formal/99-10-07, or the Java IDL topic, The Portable Object Adaptor.
The idlj compiler now generates server-side mappings based on the POA Inheritance Model. For compatibility with existing applications, a new flag has been added to the idlj compiler to allow it to generate server-side mappings based on the ImplBase Inheritance Model, -oldImplBase. Existing applications that need to talk to servers created in J2SE 1.3 or prior may need to update their MAKEFILE so that this flag is used, however, new applications that have no such requirements should not generate these deprecated mappings. For more information on the idlj compiler and its options, follow the link.

Portable Interceptors
Portable Interceptors are hooks into the ORB through which ORB services can intercept the normal flow of execution in the ORB. For more information about PIs, read the specification for ptc/2001-03-04 or the Java IDL topic, Portable Interceptors.

Interoperable Naming Service
The Interoperable Naming Service (INS) provides the following features:

Capability to resolve using stringified names (e.g., a/b.c/d)
URLs for CORBA object references (corbaloc: and corbaname: formats)
Standard APIs in NamingContextExt for converting between CosNames, URLs, and Strings
ORB arguments for bootstrapping (ORBInitRef and ORBDefaultInitRef)

For more information about INS, read the specification, (ptc/00-08-07)
, or read the Java IDL documents Interoperable Naming Service or Interoperable Naming Service (INS) Example.

GIOP 1.2
GIOP 1.2 is now fully supported. GIOP (General Internet InterORB Protocol) is the specification for a wire-level protocol for ORB (Object Request Broker) interoperability. IIOP (Internet InterORB Protocol) is a specific mapping of the GIOP that runs directly over TCP/IP connections. You can read about GIOP at ftp://ftp.omg.org/pub/docs/formal/00-10-51.pdf.

Dynamic Anys
The Dynamic Management of Any Values enables traversal of the data value associated with an any at runtime and extraction of the primitive constituents of the data value. This is especially helpful for writing powerful generic servers (bridges, event channels supporting filtering). Similarly, this facility enables the construction of an any at runtime, without having static knowledge of its type. This is especially helpful for writing generic clients (bridges, browsers, debuggers, user interface tools). You can read about Dynamic Management of Any Values at ftp://ftp.omg.org/pub/docs/formal/00-10-45.pdf, or see the DynamicAny API.

Object Request Broker Daemon
The Object Request Broker Daemon (ORBD) tool is a daemon process containing the following components: Bootstrap Service, Transient Naming Service, Persistent Naming Service, and Server Manager. For more information on ORBD, link to orbd.

Server Tool
The Server Tool provides an ease-of-use interface for application programmers to register, unregister, startup, and shutdown a server. For more information on the Server Tool, link to servertool.

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