(March 20, 2002) -Microsoft has released the second beta of Microsoft® Visual J#? .NET, a development tool for Java-language developers who want to build applications and services on the Microsoft .NET Framework. Visual J# .NET is the first Java-language development tool to run on a platform offering native support for XML Web services. This support enables an easy transition for Java-language developers into the world of XML Web services and dramatically improves the interoperability of Java-language programs with existing software written in a variety of programming languages. Visual J# .NET helps Microsoft Visual J++® customers and other Java-language programmers take advantage of existing skills and code to fully exploit the .NET Platform.

Visual J# .NET is part of Microsoft's Java User Migration Path to Microsoft .NET (JUMP to .NET) strategy, which outlines a set of independently developed technologies to help programmers preserve, enhance, and migrate Java-language projects to the .NET Platform.

Key features include: * Full access to the .NET Framework. The .NET Framework provides the first and best platform with native support for XML Web services.

* Visual J# .NET is designed to take full advantage of the platform, including ASP.NET, ADO.NET, Windows® Forms, and XML Web services, as well as full cross-language integration.

* Integration with Visual Studio .NET. Visual J# .NET provides programming tools support through its integration with the award-winning Visual Studio®ß .NET integrated development environment.

* Visual J++ 6.0 upgrade tools. Visual J# .NET includes tools to automatically upgrade existing Visual J++ 6.0 projects and solutions to the new Visual Studio .NET format. These tools help ensure that a current Visual J++ 6.0 developer can easily move to Visual J# .NET and produce .NET applications and components.

The second beta release of Microsoft Visual J# .NET is available from either the Microsoft Web site at http://msdn.microsoft.com/visualj/jsharp/beta.asp or the MSDN® developer program Web site downloads area for MSDN Universal customers, with a final release due in the middle of 2002. Applications and services built with Visual J# .NET will run only on the .NET Framework, and will not run on any Java virtual machine. Visual J# .NET has been independently developed by Microsoft and is the property of Microsoft Corp. It is not endorsed or approved in any way by Sun Microsystems Inc.