Oracle comments on JVM strategy

Oracle‘s Java ambassador Henrik Ståhl has reacted to reports from various media outlets about a dual license for the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) based on a merger of the JRockit and HotSpot virtual machines. As presented at JavaOne in September, this "united" JVM is to consist of the best features of the two JVMs. The result is to be incrementally implemented in OpenJDK, although a number of components – such as Sun’s Java for Business and Oracle’s JRockit Mission Control, JRockit Real Time and JRockit Virtual Edition – will continue to be sold as proprietary, commercial premium extensions.

As Ståhl points out, the merger will take several years; after all, it is probably the biggest code donation ever given to OpenJDK since the project was launched. In addition, Oracle will also be providing for free a number of JDK and JRE binaries (Java Development Kit and Java Runtime Engine) containing closed-source components from third parties. Ståhl says one example is the "font rasteriser." Oracle would like to have an open source alternative for it, but Oracle's developers have had other priorities, which is why Ståhl is asking the community to provide its own input.

Finally, the firm will also be providing services for its free JDK; software will continue to be maintained both for the commercial and the OpenJDK implementation of the virtual machine.

(crve)