Other Technologies
Java
Arose from a re-think about what sort of language should be used in a Web-oriented world. Java builds on the object orientation of C++, which in turn builds on the portability of C (itself a development of B!) Today, C# may be seen as the latest in this line of language development.
Java is important to many simply because it's not controlled by Microsoft, and it has a significant academic following. However, the greatest strength of Java is that it runs happily on Unix servers, and it is these which power the back-end of most Web applications.
Recently, we have seen a trend for using Java enterprise (J2EE)server components, running on Unix boxes, with C#.NET being used to develop the user interface tiers for rich clinets (Windows) and Websites (ASP.NET).
Oracle
Relational database with a large and loyal following. It's harder to work with than other products,partly because of its lack of visual tools. (TOAD is a shareware product that helps redress this problem.) Developers at some Oracle sites find themselves working 'against' rather than 'with' the database and its adminstrators.
Oracle sites are more likely to be using a traditional client/server
architecture than the more flexible multi-tier architecture.
Java and Oracle represent the 'non-Microsoft' choice for development