To gather insights on the state of the Java ecosystem today, we spoke to nine executives who are familiar with the ecosystem.

We asked these experienced Java professionals "What have I failed to ask you that you think we need to consider about the Java ecosystem?" Here's what they told us (or asked us in return):

• What other languages has as robust IDEs and toolsets as Java?
• Eclipse and IntelliJ have been around for more than 10 years with automated refactoring that tells you when the code you’re writing might have a problem.
• Very advanced IDE capability is missing in other languages.
• What would influence you to move away from Java?
• It’s constantly evolving, especially within quite a few federal agencies. Some are still using Windows/.NET.
• There are many transformation initiatives as well as the IT modernization fund.
• Java can help yield more long-lasting and functionality to scale and meet the long-term needs of the government.
• Keep people up to date with what’s new and useful in Java. The community process can be opaque. Make news more accessible.
• What are the top three things a Java developer couldn’t do without with regards to tools, frameworks, and IDE? How has this changed in the last two or three years?

Do you have answers to the questions posed above? Do you agree with the statements? What are some additional considerations you have for us regarding the Java ecosystem? Let us know below!

And in case you're wondering, here's who we talked to:

• Kehinde Ogunde, Developer, Andela
• Eric Shapiro, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, ArcTouch
• Prem Chandrasekaran, V.P. of Software Engineering, Barclaycard
• Rajiv Kadayam, Senior Director of Technology Strategy, eGlobalTech
• Anders Wallgren, CTO, Electric Cloud
• Ray Augé, Senior Software Architect, Liferay
• Wayne Citrin, CTO, JNBridge
• Kunal Anand, CTO, Prevoty
• Tim Jarrett, Director of Product Management, Veracode