> What external dependencies does Java need that's not in the JDK itself?
I mean that it doesn't come with Java itself, but you as a developer need to pick a UI framework and not all of them actually work all that well cross platform or will get you an actual modern interface.
Edit: I should also note that the threshold for entry I am talking about is for people just generally starting out. There simply are way more resources available for web related development than there are for java.
Also, when you start bundling your JDKs I am not sure you can talk about a smaller footprint anymore.
I mean that it doesn't come with Java itself, but you as a developer need to pick a UI framework and not all of them actually work all that well cross platform or will get you an actual modern interface.
Edit: I should also note that the threshold for entry I am talking about is for people just generally starting out. There simply are way more resources available for web related development than there are for java.
Also, when you start bundling your JDKs I am not sure you can talk about a smaller footprint anymore.