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ParaBoost Challenge: Step 1

This is step 1 of 3 of the ParaBoost Challenge.

The Jikes RVM is a Java virtual machine written mostly in Java. It is available open-source. The Jikes RVM serves as a platform for many research projects at universities world-wide. Having some understanding of its architecture is thus generally useful when applying for PhD positions related to programming language implementation.

In this first step, you will download, install, build, and run the Jikes RVM.

  1. Find a computer running an operating system supported by the Jikes RVM. We recommend Linux or Mac OS X. If you have Windows, we recommend you either install Linux first, or you find another computer running Linux or OS X.
  2. Download the Jikes RVM. Please download version 3.1.1.
  3. Work through the "Care and Feeding" section of the Jikes RVM User's Guide to build and run a "development" configuration of the Jikes RVM for your platform. Note that this will take some time, and it will access the internet to fetch dependencies (such as ecj and GNU Classpath).

Note: Building a complex system such as the Jikes RVM may require some extra work. You may run into problems while building, and you will have to figure out what to do. One example that can lead to problems is if you store the Jikes RVM in a directory that includes spaces in its name. Another example of a problem that probably will occur for you, is that the build process cannot download checkstyle from SourceForge. In such a case, google the error message to find whether somebody has already described a work around (they have). Issues like these have nothing to do with research, but you will have to deal with them nevertheless when doing research that includes the construction of systems.

If you complete this step of the challenge, please include the output of the following command in the ParaBoost Challenge document that you submit with your application:

rvm -showversion -verbose HelloWorld

on the following Java class (compile the class first with javac; javac is not part of the Jikes RVM):

public class HelloWorld {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    System.out.println("Hello World");
  }
}