We are pleased to announce the 1.0 release of J2ObjC, a Google-authored open-source compiler that lets iPhone/iPad applications use Java code. J2ObjC's goal is to support the sharing of an application's non-UI code (such as data access, or application logic) by writing it once in Java, then building it into the iOS application. This same code can be shared with the Android and web versions of the application (the latter using the GWT compiler), as well as with server-side code. J2ObjC is licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0.
J2ObjC is not a Java emulator, but instead translates Java to Objective-C classes that extend the iOS Foundation Framework. It supports the Java 8 language and runtime required by client-side application developers. JUnit and Mockito test translation and execution is also supported. J2ObjC can be used with most build tools, including Xcode and Make, and there are Gradle and Maven plug-ins.
J2ObjC does not translate user interfaces, as world-class apps need to have world-class user interfaces that adhere closely to the different iOS and Android design standards. J2ObjC instead focuses on writing common abstractions once, and verifying them with a common set of unit tests. This ensures that an app's features work the same across platforms, improving customer experiences. Teams developing multi-platform apps still need great engineers for each platform, but with J2ObjC they don't waste time rewriting each others' code.
Using continuous integration, J2ObjC helps product velocity. As each feature is added or bug fix made to the application's shared code, all platforms are automatically rebuilt and tested. And because common features are shared across platforms, a bug found on one platform is fixed once for all platforms.
Several of Google’s iOS applications use J2ObjC for these reasons, including Inbox by Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides and Google My Business. Each team has dedicated iOS designers and engineers, but application logic common to all platforms is written once.
By Tom Ball, Google Engineering
