Java in the browser has been a horrible experience since the 90s until now. I suspect part of that is the fact that it is always a non-native plugin and has an excruciating load time.
A bytecode VM would allow things like Coffeescript to run without the JS interlayer.
My larger point is that Javascript as a language is atrocious, along with SGML derivatives, along with CSS. The web stack is a polished turd that has been pretzeled far past the initial design. While HTML and CSS are not very straightforward to 'fix' today, starting with a bytecode-based execution model will allow some revolution instead of incremental JS improvements.
A bytecode VM would allow things like Coffeescript to run without the JS interlayer.
My larger point is that Javascript as a language is atrocious, along with SGML derivatives, along with CSS. The web stack is a polished turd that has been pretzeled far past the initial design. While HTML and CSS are not very straightforward to 'fix' today, starting with a bytecode-based execution model will allow some revolution instead of incremental JS improvements.