(This from guest blogger Alistair Alexander): A new version of Java for mobile phones has been released by a group of developers led by Motorola, Zdnet reports today. Mobile Information Device Platform 2 (MIDP 2) will give developers more control over interface design, improve game performance and standardise data transfer, among other improvements. But MIDP 2.0 will require up to 100k of memory to run - exceeding the limits of most mobile phones currently available. Nevertheless, the new Java platform indicates that Sun's platform-independent software is consolidating its position in areas where Microsoft has failed to dominate.