Programming J2ME is a very tricky business, much more so than regular desktop programming. Because you have limited resources, most of the time you simply don’t have the luxury of wasting them. Granted, sometimes you can get away with using RAM and CPU cycles like there’s no tomorrow, but any serious number-crunching in J2ME requires you to be a really, really clever coder. You have to use all the tricks you’ve got : clever memory allocation techniques, clever ways of speeding up your computations, clever ways of storing your data, even clever ways of displaying information. Not to mention you have to handle device-specific issues, of which there are a lot. There’s no question about it, J2ME programming can be (and often is) difficult, inconsistent and perplexing.

So why do I love it ? Well, plenty of reasons. It always keeps me thinking while I work. It doesn’t allow me to get rusty, because I always have to tackle new challenges and learn new tricks. It gives me the satisfaction of literally holding my work in the palm of my hand. It makes me feel great because I can create some very cool stuff despite the very restrictive environment. It fuels my imagination, because J2ME means computer programs that you can carry around and use wherever you are. Last but certainly not least, it makes me feel like a real programmer (without the convoluted and hieroglyphic-like coding style).

Why do you love (or hate) J2ME ?