In this article, Raghavan N. Srinivas introduces client-side deployment using several different Java technologies, with a particular focus on Java Web Start. (4,500 words) ...

A mechanism for delivering full-blown Java applications from a Web server. The programs are initially downloaded using the browser but are run outside of the browser. Contrast with Java applets ...

Alternatively, the user can start the application from a link on a web page that points to the same URL/JNLP file combination; i.e., the original version from the website.

Since JNLP files are simply Java Web Start files that open applications through an Internet browser, any browser that works in Windows 8.1 will open a JNLP file as long as you have Java installed.

Sun will also be adding the GPLv2 to its server platform Java Platform Enterprise Edition (Java EE), already an open source offering under Project GlassFish, in the first quarter of 2007.

Web Start was positioned as a way to make it easier to get Java applications running on end-user machines. Web Start has done that somewhat, and with its inclusion in all Java 1.4 VM downloads, it ...