Microsoft is getting ready to unveil its new Windows XP operating system and .NET platform. While Windows XP is expected to have many new features, the biggest news might be what is excluded.

Microsoft is shipping Windows XP and Internet Explorer 6.0 without a Java Virtual Machine. Java is a programming language developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc. Without a JVM, Java applets and programs, common elements used on the Web, won't run. Users will, however, still be able to download and install a JVM to Windows XP.

"They have also changed the security settings for Java," says Andrew Shakiar, director of possie.org, a group of Java developers. "A new XP machine just won't see it."

This has definite impact on businesses that have invested in Java, he says. It could be difficult for businesses using Java for their online catalogs, Web site applets and e-business applications.

With millions of Java developers and existing programs, Java isn't likely to disappear. Nonetheless, Randy Heffner, a research director with Cambridge, Mass.-based GIGA Information Group, says companies currently using Java on their Web presence should evaluate their use of Java programs.

"Many companies may simply choose to manage their own JVM and continue to use Java," he says. "But Macromedia's Flash is one option and Microsoft's Web services are another."

Microsoft's platform for Web services is .NET. Microsoft global director for manufacturing, Peter Wengert, says Web services will run any program, anywhere, from any machine. It will also allow information exchange between various systems and software.

"Previous software development and hardware investments aren't excluded from .NET," says Wengert. "Our XML standards and common language runtime enable 37 languages and virtually any legacy machine."

Web services is not a new idea by Microsoft, however. Sun, IBM and other companies have been working on Web services for years, says Shakiar.