[seacious]

There's a lot to dislike about java, but the platform independence story of the JVM really is the best of anything out there that I've experienced. That doesn't necessarily mean Java anymore, Clojure, Scala, etc. all benefit from the work done to make the JVM truly platform independent. But when I compare it to my experiences with Node.js, ruby, or haskell, (dependencies not working because library maintainers forgetting (or don't care) that not every one uses their preferred development operating system), I am really grateful for all the boring, finicky work that contributors have put into making a truly cross platform development target.

[jf5s2]

The JVM is a great platform, even if I prefer not to use Java the language much. Most of the code I write these days is in Scala.

[dsl]

> the platform independence story of the JVM really is the best of anything out there

Serious question: Is this still true, and does it even matter anymore?

If you are building web apps you can run whatever platform you want. 40%+ of smart phones don't do Java. Arduino doesn't have a fully functional JVM. Java in the browser is non-existent due to security issues.

[toddan]

I think it matters, try developing ruby on rails on windows and you will have bad time. For me only php and java are the two platforms that i have been able to develop with, no matter what os i am currently using.

[Nullabillity]

Getting *AMP running is a pain no matter where you are. On the other hand, I was merrily chugging along with Python stuff on Windows for a long time with only one problem (in order to install native libraries you either need an obscure version of Visual Studio or hunt down obscure downloads from the itnernet).