Here is another great post from java.net weblogs about another orphaned Java package: javax.comm.

"If Sun really wants to see Java applications on the desktop, it needs to finish the tools–all the tools–that people need to write those applications. And that includes javax.comm. I couldn't argue that javax.comm should be a high corporate priority, but there's a solution to that: contribute javax.comm, javax.sound, and any other APIs that have been orphaned over the years to the community. The "write once, run anywhere" story is GREAT, and it REALLY WORKS–but it doesn't count if it's "write once, run anywhere, as long as you don't need to talk to any devices out there."