Not as tectonic as one might have hoped, the joint announcement from Google and Sun Microsystems has large implications. Clearly an alliance that opposes Microsoft in the long-range struggle for ownership of new computing paradigms, this newly minted public friendship will be inaugurated modestly. Google will take a hand in distributing Sun's Jva engine … or vice versa, depending on what you read. (USA Today says Java will be endled with the Google Toolbar; ZDNet says the Toolbar will be bundled with Java.)

Either way, it's a soft announcement, and meaningless to consumers generally. Eric Schmidt tried to dramatize it like this: "Google and Java are two of the most widely recognized technology brands because they provide users with online tools that enhance their lives on a day to day basis." That's foolish; java is a "widely recognized technology brand" only within the industry. Ask 100 people on the street if they know what google is and most will say yes; ask them what Java is and most will stare blankly—they won't understand it after an explanation, either. Any opt-in distribution of Java Virtual Machine bundled with Google Toolbar will probably be ignored.

But never mind this quibbling. Eric Schmidt wasn't being disingenuous; he was merely keeping his head in the industry. And this announcement needn't involve a new product launch (like the widely speculated Google Office) to be important. Eric Schmidt and Scott McNealy could have stood up and said "We're going steady (in a totally business way)," and the result would have been the same. Putting google in the room gives a motivational jolt to Java developers and licensees. and the Google Office thing? It's still a good bet.