(FORTUNE Magazine) – In case you haven't been following the titanic wars of the software giants, you should know that Sun Microsystems is engaged in what it thinks of as a death battle with Microsoft. Sun is pushing a technology called Java, which comes in the form of a programming language and a system to run Java programs on any computer. Microsoft licensed Java nearly two years ago, to include with its Windows operating system. But last year Sun sued Microsoft for violating the terms of that license; Sun believes Microsoft wants to change Java so that it works well only on Windows PCs. Just last week Microsoft introduced a new, improved form of Java--and, for now, it runs only on Windows. It was in this context that I composed the following piece of direct mail, and persuaded my editors to deliver it to you.

Dear FORTUNE 500 Executive:

I ask you to spare a few minutes of your valuable time to let me tell you about an important project designed to enhance our global competitiveness and ensure that America remains a vital and entrepreneurial society. I am not going to ask for money. Instead, I want you to use your influence as a senior executive of a major American corporation.

I am writing to ask that you get involved in the Save the Java Foundation, an organization seeking to bring reason where little now exists. Being a normal human being, you may associate Java with coffee beverages or even the South Pacific. I am writing about a less known class of Java, a class of software that faces extinction if action is not taken soon.

This Java faces extinction because it is a new species that exists only in remote territories. It has shown an ability to survive, in part by transforming itself. But this new species is vulnerable to the ravages of a debilitating war conducted by those who would own it. The press often uses dry terms to describe this war. I call the conflict the War of Really Big Legal Egos, or Worble. It is a battle with potentially dire long-term implications.

Java is hard to describe, since so few have seen it in the light of day. Only a few high priests of technology, particularly those who worship the Sun gods, have been allowed to behold the beauty of its code. Reports have it that Java is able to produce software of unparalleled style, software that transports instantly to all parts of the world and even transforms itself to play with software of other cultures and environments, software that can respond to the user's every whim without delay or incompatibility.

I have traveled extensively in the land of technology, and have rarely been so touched as when I did get a glimpse of real Java software. As one human to another, I appeal to you--please recognize the importance of this class of software to our future.

Imagine, if you will, a world without the beauty and style of Java. Imagine a world where software weighs many megabytes and takes several minutes to load. Imagine a world where all software is written as though we were not connected. Sadly, that is the world we live in--one in which PC software is unaware of the beauty, richness, and complexity of the surrounding world. That's why Java is so important to our society in the new millennium.

I know that you are a busy executive. But you are also a person of means and influence, which is how you come to be a reader of FORTUNE. This is why I am writing to you about this new species called Java. You can help! Through your personal influence, we can bring an end to the Worble and allow Java to flourish.

Here's how you can get involved. The Worble is fought by the leaders of two factions: the Suns and the Windows. (Yes, it is a strange land we're talking about, but everything I am telling you about is absolutely true.) I am asking you to write a letter to the leader of each faction: Scott McNealy of the Suns and William Gates of the Windows. In order to be truly effective, of course, it is best if you write these letters in your own words and sign them personally. Let me provide you with a proposed model for these letters.

Dear Mr. McNealy: I understand that you have challenged the Windows in a battle. Your people were creative and talented enough to have discovered Java and nourished it to life. That is a remarkable accomplishment. But it would be terribly sad if the Suns got so focused on the Windows that you allowed Java to waste away.

I know you believe that the Suns are the underdog in this war, and I empathize with your plight in trying to remain independent of the Windows' attempt to take over the planet. But I believe that Java itself is far too precious to be sacrificed in this war.

Would you please negotiate honestly with Mr. Gates, the Windows' leader, and find a way that Java can still work everywhere in the world? I am certain that Mr. Gates will be reasonable and stop trying to change Java. All you have to do is stop spewing venom--just stop entertaining all those journalists and trade-show audiences with nasty remarks about Mr. Gates and his ethics.

If you do what you can to bring Mr. Gates to the negotiating table, I pledge that I will do everything in my power to help my company, [insert company name], see that we should develop our own software in Java and work with the Suns and all of your friends and partners.

Dear Mr. Gates:

I understand that you have made moves to make Java work so well with the Windows that it may make the Suns irrelevant. I am writing on my own behalf as well as in the interests of [insert company name]. I beg you to change course, since I believe that making Java work better with Windows will lead to the death of Java.

I know that you are a very smart, powerful person who can do pretty much what you want. I'm pretty sure that you can lead the Windows to victory over the Suns, if only because the Windows are so much richer and more numerous than the Suns. But there are times when we have to put aside our personal interests, even when others are obnoxious and challenge your power, and do what is right for society and mankind. This is one of those times.

The beauty and simplicity of Java is not how muscular or quick it is, but its ability to appear via the network quickly and then engage in small, elegant tasks. The Windows' attempt to change the way Java works will make it resemble all other programs that come from that world, and that will remove the very reason Java is interesting and compelling in the first place.

So I appeal to you to set aside your immediate interests and come to the negotiating table with Mr. McNealy, leader of the Suns. I plead with you to find a way to let Java work the same way everywhere in the world and not just on the Windows. I'm certain that Mr. McNealy will muzzle himself in return for your agreement to stop trying to change Java so that it works only in the Windows.

So there you have it, dear FORTUNE reader: If you take a few minutes to compose two letters, perhaps we can make our world better for the next generation. We can help make the world safe for Java.

STEWART ALSOP is a partner with New Enterprise Associates, a venture capital firm. Except as noted, neither he nor his partnership has a financial interest in the companies mentioned. Alsop may be reached at salsop@earthlink.net