Sun Open Sources Java Under GPL

prostoalex writes "The embargo is off, and Associated Press is reporting on Sun releasing Java under GPL. Sun is hoping that this step will attract more developers, as well as extend the lifespan of Java. The article notes that this is 'one of the largest additions of computer code to the open-source community', and that Java is currently being run on something like 3.8 Billion devices worldwide." From the article: "Rich Green, Sun's executive vice president of software, said the company hopes to turn more developers into Java programmers, who may then create additional software to support Sun products. 'The open-sourcing of this really means more — more richness of offerings, more capability, more applications that consumers will get to use,' Green said. 'The platform itself will become a place for innovation.' All the Java source code is expected to be released by March 2007, Green said. The move covers all Java technology, which includes software that runs on handheld devices, personal computers and servers."

Comments

Java sucks

[Anonymous Coward]

I want a GPL'd latte :-(

Re:Java sucks

[akeyes]

That's what you get for using Firefox 3. I had no problems using Firefox 2.

let's see who's the first one

[cucucu]

to post a link to a forked java

Re:let's see who's the first one

[iapetus]

I win!

Re:GPL for all?

[molnarcs]

Then it will still be easier licensewise to use mono.

And patent-wise? I mean for non-Novell customers, obviously.

finally

[Kuku_monroe]

Now Stallman can drink coffee again

Re:Holy Shit!

[Anonymous Coward]

He he he, I have already started compiling Java.

Of course, I am on Gentoo... :)

I, for one...

[DimGeo]

... welcome our new Duke overlord.

Re:FUD

[Zigg]

And I'm sorry to say this but Star Wars isn't real.

That's what the Empire wants you to think!

Re:This is good, but...

[Anonymous Coward]

If Python is superior to Java, then why is the leading Bittorrent client, Azureus, written in Java

I don't know but it may be connected with why it's also a buggy, slow, memory-hogging piece of shit that crashes or just goes ape-shit crazy on a regular basis. I have a theory that this is actually caused by Java's garbage collection agent trying to delete the whole of the program's code on the grounds that it clearly is garbage.

Re:But its 10 years late!

[randomblast]

> Just think if Sun had done this in the 90s. There would never have been a GTK/Qt appliactions split because all software would have been written in Java.

Oh thank God they didn't open source it in the 90's!

And then the dirty little secret is revealed

[eclectro]

That it was all written using Visual Basic.

You know it is true

[Anonymous Coward]

C++ > LISP > pascal > C# > python > Java > Visual basic.

Re:bravo

[byolinux]

Which of the following is correct? ;)

NeXTSTEP
NEXTSTEP
Nextstep

Answers on a postcard.

This settles it

[Lisandro]

I'm moving to Hell this summer. I hear the weather is lovely down there lately.

Re:What do you mean, "suitable for Linux"?

[walt-sjc]

that Java on Debian will be as easy as "apt-get install java"

Close... More like: "apt-get install java java-doc java-common java-dev java-examples java-gnome libjava libjava-doc libjava-dev" :-)

A Great Disturbance

[greg_barton]

I felt a great disturbance in the slashdot, as if millions of "sun is the next redmond" trolls cried out in terror, and then vanished.

Re:What do you mean, "suitable for Linux"?

[just_another_sean]

Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree... Done
Package java-examples is not available, but is referred to by another package.
This may mean that the package is missing, has been obsoleted, or
is only available from another source
E: Package java-examples has no installation candidate