Sun is to roll out a Java-based product family called JavaFX, which covers Java development from the desktop to the Web to mobile devices. It features a new scripting variant of the Java, called JavaFX Script. JavaFX is a line of products focused on opportunities in the consumer communications market, targeted to  mobile clients, and TVs. The first product release is JavaFX Mobile, a software system for mobile devices

JavaFX bears a similarity to enhanced graphics capabilities offered in the new Microsoft Silverlight platform. but Silverlight differs in that it is mostly focused on video-streaming.

Formerly referred to by the codename, F3, the JavaFX platform could draw attention from AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) programmers. AJAX has grown as a popular technique for building Web pages.

While the Java Mobile Edition (ME) platform has focused on a reduced set of functionality for mobile devices compared to Java SE, JavaFX brings core Java SE capabilities down to mobile devices.JavaFX differs from Sun’s Flair, which also proposes an alternative to AJAX, in that Flair is based on JavaScript but JavaFX is not

Sun’s SPOT (Small Programmable Object Technology) device platform available via open source by the next week.

Sun SPOT is a Java-based experimental platform intended to enable development of products like wireless sensors, robotics, and communication devices. The open-sourcing is expected to be made official at the Java Mobile & Embedded Developer Days Conference which is being held January 23-24.Included in the open source endeavor would be the Squawk virtual machine featured as part of Sun SPOT. Through the open-source move, Sun hopes to attract more developers to Sun SPOT.

Java, according to to Sun, is on 95 percent of mobile phones shipped today. Sun makes money off of mobile and embedded Java through commercial licenses that feature support services.Sun’s JavaFX and JavaFX mobile technology. The JavaFX platform, featuring JavaFX Mobile, is intended to provide a consistent and graphical user experience on systems ranging from desktops to mobile devices and other systems.