Google updates App Engine, adds Java support

Google App Engine's support for Java is limited to the first 10,000 sign-ups and is intended to gather feedback from the Java developer community.

According to Google the Java support is standards-based as App Engine uses standard Java APIs and libraries to allow developers to work with Java tools and frameworks they are familiar with.

"And ensures the easy deployment of their Java code to all standard J2EE servlet containers, including IBM WebSphere, Tomcat and others," according to a statement by Google.

Google product manager Andrew Bowers said with the new features, and Java language support "we're making Google App Engine a viable deployment option for more and more application developers".

Google collaborated with Oracle, IBM, Appirio, Cast Iron, Panorama, PivotLink, Sword Group, ThoughtWorks, Cloud Sherpas and PingIdentity for this launch.

"App Engine's early look at Java language support includes a Java runtime, integration with the new Google Web Toolkit 1.6, and a Google Plugin for Eclipse," according to Google.

Other new features of Google App Engine include Cron support for scheduling and running tasks on a regular basis; database import and export for batch transfer of data to and from App Engine; access to firewalled data with Google's new Secure Data Connector to help apps in the cloud tap into on-premise data stores.

Google hopes these tools will provide a unified development experience for writing AJAX applications in a single language, from client to server.