Every year it’s hard to fathom how quickly time passes by. But here we are in the final days of 2023. And as year’s end approaches, I’d like to reflect on all the ongoing momentum in the developer community that continues to keep Java vibrant.

Just like every prior year, 2023 was filled with amazing milestones in the Java community. As Java technology continues to advance, it’s the people, people like you, that give it such a strong heartbeat. So, with the holiday season upon us, I’d like to give thanks, appreciation, and recognition from Oracle’s Java Developer Relations Team for many of those accomplishments and the people involved. Enjoy…

Conferences

Each passing year, the dozens of Java conferences around the world continue to help developers learn connect and participate in the Java community. In 2023, there were events that celebrated anniversaries that are worthy of recognition:

Devoxx UK (May 10-12, 2023)

As one of the premier Java events in Europe, this year’s Devoxx UK conference celebrated its 10th edition. Over three days, 1,000+ attendees were offered over 160 sessions from 130+ speakers along with many community building experiences ranging from dedicated hallway track time, an unconference and blind lightning talks! Each year, Devoxx UK grows larger and affords attendees, speakers and sponsors a uniquely valuable experience. If you missed the 2023 event or would like to re-live it, you can watch session replays and view the conference digital photo album. I’m very thankful for all the effort put forth by the conference organizers, especially Mark Hazell, Kim Fletcher and Sam Hepburn. They’ve truly created a unique, must-attend experience, which I hope all of you have the opportunity to partake in the future. The 2024 Devoxx UK event is just around the corner (May 8-10). There’s still time to submit to the conference CfP (deadline is January 12, 2024)!

Devoxx Belgium (October 2-6, 2023)

Devoxx Belgium continues to be one of the most highly anticipated developer events every year, and 2023 was no exception. This year, Devoxx Belgium celebrated its 20th edition by delivering over 200 talks from 200+ speakers. The conference brought a rich experience of learning, sharing and collaborating throughout the week to over 3,000 attendees. Devoxx Belgium continues to set a high-bar for tech conferences and it’s all due to an amazing event team led by Stephan Janssen. You can re-live Devoxx Belgium on YouTube and Flickr. And don’t forget, Devoxx Belgium will be back in 2024 (October 7-11). Click for more details!

Devoxx Morocco (October 11-13, 2023)

How quickly time flies. In 2023, Devoxx Morocco celebrated its 10th edition. As the largest developer community conference in the Middle East-Africa region, this year’s event brought 800+ attendees and speakers together not just from the African continent but from almost every corner of the globe. Devoxx Morocco celebrated the rich evolution of Java as well as the power of community participation through 120+ talks from 140 speakers. Community focus was given through topics such as career building, diversity & inclusion, peer mentoring, and enabling the next-generation of developers. My thanks to all the Devoxx Morocco organizers including Badr El Houari and Faissal Boutaounte. Re-experience this year’s conference on Flickr.

J-Fall (November 9, 2023)

Hand’s down, J-Fall is the best 1-day Java conference on the planet, and some have said it’s the best Java community-driven event in Western Europe (I think I said that!). Organized by the Dutch Java User Group, J-Fall celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2023 by delivering 50+ sessions from 70+ speakers to over 1,800 attendees in just one day! Beyond a rich collection of technical content, J-Fall continued to cover topics important at a human level by exploring ethics in technology, diversity, and more. The organizers continue to put on a world-class event and it’s important to say “Thank You” to folks like Bert Breeman, Bert Jan Schrijver, and Brian Vermeer whose community-first ethos is represented in every facet of J-Fall.

Java Champions

Started in 2005, the Java Champions program continues to be an effort to strengthen and encourage the community of Java leaders (including authors, trainers, professors, researchers, developers, and JUG leaders) to ensure the technology AND community stay vibrant.

Thus far in 2023, eighteen new Java technical and community luminaries became members of the Java Champions program. They lend their voice to the 380+ Java Champions members whose contributions help keep the Java ecosystem connected. I’d like to offer my thanks to the newest members:

• Hans Dockter
• Brian Sam-Bodden
• Frank Delporte
• Falk Sippach
• Tobias Frech
• Michael P. Redlich
• Daniel Oh
• Tom Cools
• Jason Lee
• Hanno Embregts
• Glenn Renfro
• Marit van Dijk
• Francisco Isidro
• Elias Nogueira
• Francesco Nigro
• Simon Martinelli
• Nate Schutta
• Jorge Hidalgo

Java User Groups

Many may not know this, but the first Java User Group (JUG) was founded in 1996. Which one? The New York Java Special Interest Group (NYSIG). Since then, there are now over 360 JUGs touching almost every corner of our planet.

JUGs are volunteer organizations that strive to distribute Java-related knowledge around the world. They provide a meeting place for Java users to get information, share resources and solutions, increase networking, expand Java Technology expertise, and above all, strive to build a more inclusive community. JUGs are the meeting point for the Java community to connect, communicate and collaborate with developer peers.

I’m beyond thankful to all the JUG leaders and organizers who continue to deliver activities and events that galvanize local developers to improve the Java world around us. I hope you have the opportunity to connect with a JUG that interests you. To make the experience easier I’d welcome you to visit the Java Developer Relations Dev.java portal to explore the vast number of JUGs around the world.

Dev.java Community Contributions

This year marked a new beginning for the official Java portal. Beyond the technical and ecosystem resources brought to you by the Java Developer Relations team, Dev.java now affords the Java community to make contributions that the developer ecosystem can utilize to advance their Java knowledge. We’d like to thank the seven inaugural authors for their material, which you can view here:

• Dr. Venkat Subramaniam
• Jeanne Boyarsky
• Cay Horstmann
• Dr. Heinz Kabutz
• Paul Anderson
• Gail C. Anderson
• Daniel Schmid

To learn more about how you can submit content for consideration, please visit our GitHub community contribution project.

Duke’s Corner

There’s no shortage of technical content that the Java Developer Relations team offers you through multiple mediums and formats, both in short-form and long-form.

To complement the technical story around Java, we also want to ensure the voice of the community is well-represented. Through your unique Java experiences, we can all learn how to become both better users of Java and members of the community.

In 2023, ten podcast episodes of Duke’s Corner were recorded. Have a listen to hear the personal stories of developers like you to help inspire your next Java journey:

• Monica Beckwith on Her Passion for the JVM
• Grace Jansen on her Passion for Java and Developer Diversity
• Neha Sardana and her “aha” Moments with Java
• Holly Cummins in the Engine Room of Java
• Rafael Winterhalter on Moving from Economics to Software and the Benefits of Java
• Professor Isidro: Software is about People!
• Sirisha Pratha: Java is my Superpower!
• Josiah Davisson: Learning Java in High School
• Sam Brannen: Hard Core Software Developer
• Stéphane Nicoll on Contributing and Growing Communities

We’d love to interview more of you to share your journey, experiences, and knowledge with the Java community. If you’re interested, please send me an e-mail: sharat.chander@oracle.com

On towards 2024!

The next year is just on the horizon. From the vast Java community momentum delivered in 2023, I’m confident that 2024 will be even better! I’m looking forward to seeing all the great work all of you are planning to do and then deliver a similar year-end message next December. Until then, my utmost gratitude for all of your Java efforts this year. How does Java stay vibrant? By the collective harmony in the Java community. THANK YOU!