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"Why is it good to open source OpenSolaris and OpenOffice and bad to open source Java?" Back in March, ActiveGrid CEO Peter Yared (pictured) wrote an Open Letter posing this question to Jonathan Schwartz. Now that Schwartz is no longer "just" president and COO but has ascended to the giddy heights of CEO...Java Developer's Journal thought it appropriate to bring you again the text of Yared's "Dear Jonathan,
Long time no see! The same way you enjoy writing open letters to IBM and others in your blog -- I wanted to write an open letter to you and Sun, and see if I can get a little clarity about your open source software strategy. As I am sure you have noticed, there has been quite a bit of momentum around LAMP in the industry, ranging from innovators like Google, Yahoo!, and Amazon, to the "Web 2.0" crowd like Friendster, MySpace, and Flickr. In addition, LAMP has increasing usage in the enterprise.
The "P" languages in LAMP -- PHP, Python, and Perl -- are all open source, and each provide their own virtual machine. It would be ideal if the Java JVM was open source so that open source projects like PHP could join up with the Java Virtual Machine. In turn, Java would be much more competitive with .Net, which supports numerous languages out of the box. Initiatives like adding dynamic language support in the JVM will not go far if Java can not meet existing languages on a common ground of open source.
What is unfortunate about Sun's open source strategy is that it is very unclear. Can you please answer the following question with a single coherent sentence that people can remember and repeat? If I ask five Sun employees this question, I get five different answers, so having simple answers to these questions will clearly help your own workforce as well as your customers and prospects!
"Why is it good to open source OpenSolaris and OpenOffice and bad to open source Java?"
We all know the standard Sun answer that Java will get fractured and that the JCP is great. However, OpenSolaris and OpenOffice have not been fractured since being open sourced. And most of the Java innovation nowadays comes from open source projects like Spring and Hibernate, not the JCP, which then has to recreate all of these open source projects. Some of the biggest supports of Java, including IBM and BEA and others in the JCP executive committee, have long asked for Java to be open sourced.
So what's up? Can you guys let go a bit and let us all share a single, open source virtual machine? It would be good for Java, good for LAMP, and good for customers. Combining two of the three leading development platforms would make them both more competitive against .Net.
Regards,
Peter"
litl_phil wrote: While it's nice that Google and Acer share the vision of cloud-based computing, it's also worth noting that we at litl already have a webbook on the market (available at litl.com) that runs our own cloud-based OS.
Unlike Chrome, litlOS is focused on creating a new and better web experience for the home, so we don't have the usual browser interface, we have our own innovative UI. In conjunction with easel mode (litl's inverted-V position) and our growing cohort of litl channels (special apps t...
Dec. 4, 2009 11:38 AM EST
Oracle seems to have divided the open source ranks over the MySQL delay it’s having closing its acquisition of Sun. Eben Moglin, the GPL’s most ardent defender and delineator, the lawyer who has worked hand in glove for years with the Free Software Foundation’s founder Richard Stallman...
Cloud computing is a game changer. The cloud is disrupting traditional software and hardware business models by disrupting how IT service gets delivered. Entrepreneurial opportunities abound as this classic disruptive technology begins to proliferate, so it is no surprise that SYS-CON'...
The irony is that Oracle has advanced MySQL, lost money in the process, and helped its competitors - all at the same time. When Oracle buys Sun and controls MySQL the gift (other than to Microsoft SQL Server) keeps on giving as the existential threat to RDBs is managed by Redwood Shore...
WSO2, the open source SOA company, today announced the launch of the WSO2 Cloud Platform. Available today, the new WSO2 Cloud Platform features a family of WSO2 Cloud Virtual Machines; WSO2 Cloud Connectors for enabling fast, secure cloud services; and the multi-tenant WSO2 Governance-...
Now, the open source Mozilla Thunderbird client software can be used with Open-Xchange collaboration software. The "Community OXtender for Thunderbird" software connector gives users full access to appointments and contacts stored in the Open-Xchange Server and enables them to use Thun...
Morph Labs, a leading provider of enterprise cloud computing technology, today announced an introductory trial of the Morph CloudServer, an open, standards-based server IT organizations can use to rapidly model and evaluate their cloud implementations. A miniature "Cloud Environment in...
