Java arrived in the 1990s with a promise of 'Write once, run anywhere' but has now become a legacy slowing down modern development.In its early days, Java provided safety, structure, and portability, making it popular for enterprise computing and web applications.However, Java's verbosity and legacy codebase are now seen as hindrances to efficient and agile development.The challenge for Java moving forward is to balance its established ecosystem with the need to adapt to modern development practices.