There's an interesting article in the April 97 _C++ Report_ magazine.
It's the cover story article.  The title is "Well-Mannered Objects:
Tips on Porting C++ to Java".  It's written by Mark Davis of Taligent.
Here's the first paragraph:

  "Java has taken the programming world by storm.  In our own
   experience in developing software at Taligent, its turnaround
   time is several times faster than that of C++ -- a crucial
   feature in today's markets.  Moreover, it has significant
   advantages over C++ in terms of portability, power, and
   simplicity.  These advantages are leading many people to
   consider replacing C++ with Java, not only for Web applets,
   but increasingly for client and server applications as well."

This is a C++ magazine remember.  The article goes on to give a very
good technical discussion of the issues involved in porting C++ code
to Java.  The author's full paper on the subject is available through
http://www.taligent.com/ and looks like an excellent source of
information from a group of people who have gone beyond the hype of
Java and are doing real work with it and know what the good and bad
points really are.

G.