Java: One Step Closer To Open Source

Ritalin16 writes "Sun Microsystems on Monday intends to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its Java programming language by sharing the proprietary source code for several key Java applications used by corporate customers. Sun officials believe that by making the source codes open to developers, they will spur more involvement and use of Java-based applications."

Comments

Read the "fine" article, please

[FortKnox]

Ahh, someone who wants to make a front page slashdot article, but doesn't understand Java. What's worse? The editor that posts it, and doesn't understand java.

The source code being released isn't "source code for several key Java applications," its the source to Sun's java application server (called "Platform Edition 9"). Other app servers you probably have heard of are WebSphere, WebLogic, and.... the open source JBoss! The reason Sun is open sourcing their app server is because no one uses it!

If a company wants to run a giant professional website and has money to throw at it, they'll get WebLogic or WebSphere to run it. If they don't, they run tomcat (if no EJBs requried) or JBoss. No one uses Sun's app server cause its new and immature.

This is not a step towards opening Java. The only relation this has to Java is the fact that it runs Java code and is written in Java. Just because sun open sourced it doesn't mean its thinking about open sourcing the Java lanugage.

Re:Read the "fine" article, please

[Eric Giguere]

The reason Sun is open sourcing their app server is because no one uses it!

Sun's application server has actually been free to use (including production deployment) for quite some time now, so this further step of releasing the source code under a friendly license isn't that big a deal. Let's face it, basic application servers are pretty much commodities these days, making it hard for anyone to compete in that space. With at least three open source app server projects on the go (this one, JBoss, Geronimo) it's certainly a crowded market. It's certainly not the big deal that misleading headline makes it sound like.

Eric
J2ME stuff

Re:Too late Java is not cool anymore

[afd8856]

massive runtime: last I look, the NET framework had me download about 40 megs from msft (includes sp1), while java stands at about 15 megs. The installation is a lot easier than NET (I had to run net twice because of some error, plus the service pack, which I needed for my app to work.

And I don't find any java app to be slow.

Re:Too late Java is not cool anymore

[Decaff]

how the HELL do you expect an end user to run JavaApp123, when all they download is a .class file?

Users almost never download class files. They download JAR files. JAR files can have a Main-Class property which means that with a JRE installed the user need only double-click the JAR to run it.

Why in GODS NAME does Java NOT USE Native Widgets?

Because native widgets can a wide range of capabilities on different platforms. The Java widgets are usually a superset of these capabilities, allowing a rich interface to be cross-platform.

I mean, I can spot a Java application light years away.

That is the developer's fault, not Java's. Java ships with the option to use widgets that have a very close match to the native OS widgets on platforms such as XP and MacOS/X (on the latter, they are indistinguishable). Sun is working to ensure that Java apps are completely visually compatible with Windows apps on the next version of Windows.

It doesn't integrate cleanly in ANY regard.

Yes it does. There is an API called JDIC (Java Desktop Integration Components) that allows very good integration with the GUI of a system, from using the 'systray' to opening native browsers and so on.