Three years ago, I wrote an article for JavaWorld called “Java Scripting Languages: Which Is Right for You?” When I collected the interpreters to compare, I tried to choose ones that seemed a good fit ...

Every programming language comes with a learning curve, but Java shares many similarities with C, C++ and JavaScript. Anyone with experience in any of those languages will pick up Java syntax quickly.

Some Java applications’ requirements make integration with a scripting language necessary. For example, your users may need to write scripts that drive the application, extend it, or contain loops and ...