public static boolean equals(Object a, Object b) throws RemoteException
  {
    if (a == b)
      return true;
    if (a == null || b == null)
      return false;
    
    if ((a instanceof GenericObject) && (b instanceof GenericObject))
      return ((GenericObject)a).equals((GenericObject)b);
    
    return a.equals(b);
  }