

Oracle sticks to Sun's open source strategy for Java - abp
http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/Oracle-sticks-to-Sun-s-open-source-strategy-for-Java-1080346.html

======
rbanffy
Oracle cant't really kill OpenJDK. Not more than they can kill MySQL.

What Oracle can do is to split Java and make the JDK 7 implementation
proprietary and incompatible with OpenJDK. They can kill Java, if they are
dumb enough.

~~~
protomyth
There is really no profit motive to killing the OpenJDK. There is a profit
motive for killing MySQL. Whatever else you want to say about Oracle, betting
on their desire for profit is a pretty good prediction strategy.

~~~
Teckla
> There is really no profit motive to killing the OpenJDK.

They could change the licensing on future versions of OpenJDK. Perhaps free
for academic and non-commercial use only. And then attempt to monetize the JDK
for commercial development.

I'm not saying it's likely to happen, just that it could happen, and it's
these kinds of worries that are making Java developers uncomfortable. I should
know, I'm one of them.

It would be in Oracle's best interest, and in the best interest of Java
developers, if they make their position on the JDK absolutely crystal clear.
And soon.

It sounds like they might do that at JavaOne, but I fear they won't
communicate their plans with the kind of crystal clarity I would like, whether
intentionally or unintentionally.

~~~
rbanffy
> They could change the licensing on future versions of OpenJDK

Possibly, but they couldn't change the license of the current version.
Relicensing it under more restrictive terms would only prompt an immediate
fork of the current codebase and focus developer attention on duplicating
features of whatever Oracle decides to launch.

Larry makes some enemies, from time to time, but, in this case, I can't see a
good reason for him to do it.

------
heresy
For now.

~~~
ddfall
Seems it'll be one of those 'wait and see' sort of things...

------
sukuriant
Forgive me for this sort of post, but am I the only one that felt like this
article ended without a conclusion? Did I miss something like a second page,
or did this really end on 'and Google responded to the charges by missing
JavaOne' when the article was on Oracle's OSS stance?

~~~
Someone
I think it is written in a style of 'most important info at the top'. That
makes the story fizzle out.

In summary: Paragraph one points to a blog post
<[http://blogs.oracle.com/henrik/2010/09/oracle_and_openjdk.ht...](http://blogs.oracle.com/henrik/2010/09/oracle_and_openjdk.html>);
that describes that Oracle will continue with Java 'business as usual'.
(aside: I think HN should link to that blog directly). Paragraph two gives a
tiny bit more info. Paragraph three give some background info that most HN
readers probably already know.

For me, the main open question is whether we should be happy or sad that
Oracle promises to "work with the OpenJDK code base and the OpenJDK community
like Sun did"?

~~~
abp
_(aside: I think HN should link to that blog directly)_

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1697347>

