Apache Plans for Open-Source Java

Everyone's seen what the Samba Team has accomplished, so I don't think Sun is in much doubt that his can be done, and done well. They would also have an eye on the Apache webserver's marketshare. So... how will they react?

Hissy fit? In PR terms, this could rank right up there alongside drowning puppies. Scott may not care. Sun could whip out patents and stuff to make life difficult for Harmony, much as MS management (as contrasted with their technical people) has recently been doing for Samba.

Ignore it, hoping that like Kaffe it will have a limited impact on their control. I rate this as the most likely option. If they do, they will like IIS be relegated to a small corner of the market.

Embrace it, perhaps opening as much of their own Java implementation as they easily can. This may actually be the worst option in terms of getting a truly unchained Java implementation because it may be seen as "good enough" by many developers while remaining tied in important ways to the apron-strings of a corporation with the potential to unilaterally drive the Java implementation to places where the rest of the world definitely doesn't want it to go. There will always be bean-counters and PHBs too interested in retaining rapid "monetisation" capability, and they may drive Sun's decisions.

Any others?

> Any others?

All of the above. None of the above. Run around in circles coming up with a new strategy every week. Post conflicting accounts of our definitive strategy in various employees' blogs. Say we love Harmony. Laugh at Harmony. Say we are going to contribute to Harmony. Say we are going open our own Java. Claim that our Java *is* Harmony. Make some jokes about Bill Gates dropping out of college. Claim that IBM is secretly planning to kill Harmony. Say that the evil Redhat is proprietary. And in the end... do nothing.

Does that sound like Sun?

sbergman27: Quiet, you're giving out their formula for failure.