Intel gets into Java multimedia

Intel wants part of the Java act too.

The company will demonstrate software at the JavaOne developer conference next week in San Francisco that it says will help programmers build bigger, better multimedia applets in Java.

The company will demonstrate Intel Media for Java class libraries, or collections of software objects, designed to make it easier for developers to add audio and video streaming, integrate 3D audio, and coordinate multiple animations in Java applets.

Intel has not said whether it will turn the class libraries into commercial products--nor has it set an availability date--but a spokeswoman suggested that the software will eventually be available for free online.

Intel Media for Java are part of a larger push by the hardware company to spur its chip sales by providing advanced multimedia development tools. The company also offers software development kits--the Realistic Display miXer (RDX) and Realistic Sound eXperience (RSX) SDKs--for creating sound applications and for mixing graphics.

The company's active participation in the multimedia market has increased since the introduction of its MMX multimedia extensions for the Pentium class of processors that adds multimedia functions like graphics acceleration and audio in the main processor. This relieves users who want to run multimedia applications of the need to buy third-party add-in cards.

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