Java is a computer software and specifications that is used to create web and mobile applications that can run on cross-platforms. Java creates a cornerstone technology for several Internet enabled functions including online banking, credit card applications, gaming, video streaming, etc.

The plausible release of Java 9 was announced by Oracle way back in JavaOne 2011. The features list discussed in the event included enhanced support for multi-gigabyte heaps, self-tuning Java Virtual Machine, better native code integration, REPL (read-eval-print loop) and JEP.

The tentative date for Java SE 9 General Availability is March 2017. The completed and proposed milestones of the 9th version is as below:

26th May 2016 - Feature Complete

11th August 2016 - All Tests Run

1st September 2016 - Rampdown Start

20th October 2016 - Zero Bug Bounce

1st DEcember 2016 - Rampdown Phase 2

26th Jan 2017 - Final Release Candidate

23rd March 2017 - General Availability

Oracle has already released Early Access Builds for testing purposes. Java SE 9 will be released with an all new Java Development Kit version string scheme with minor, major and critical patch updates. Compared to Java SE 8, SE 9 will consist of several under the hood improvisations and extra utilities that will seriously transform the way Java is used to develop software.

 New features expected in Java SE 9

JShell and REPL

JShell Java Enhancement Proposal (JEP) is released to help young developers to quickly grasp the concept of code evaluation using REPL. Read-Eval-Print Loop (REPL) will enable users to evaluate several code snippets such as statements, declarations, expressions and so on. Codes can be evaluated and tested as and when they are created without having to wait for the project completion.

Java Micro benchmarking Harness (JMH)

JMH will help users to implement Java Micro benchmarking with better accuracy for Java Virtual Machine. With JMH, there will be a uniform method of Java micro benchmarking which was prone to errors as different developers used different methods.

Support for HTTP 2.0

Java SE 9 will extend full support for HTTP 2.0 by replacing HttpURLConnection. It will also provide websockets for HTTP 2.0 as part of the new release. HTTP 2.0 RFC got released sometime back and was piled up as an addition to the Google’s SPDY algorithm.

Modular Source Code

Taking inspiration from Project Jigsaw, Java SE 9 will have a modular source code which will enable developers to reorganize JDK source into several modules that can be.

Improve Contended Locking

Improve Contended Locking will improve the performance of contended Java object monitors which will significantly improve applications. The new contended locking will also help applications meet industry benchmarks like DaCapo, Volano, etc.

Unified JVM Logging

The Java Virtual Machine by nature is a complex system where finding the root cause of program crashes or bugs is impossible. The new unified JVM logging makes it easy to find such issues in a production environment. JRockit is also a similar function that makes coding easier in Java SE 9.