Improving Java for Linux

[Frank Stefani]

Dan Lambright wrote:
> 
> Nelson wrote:
> 
> > I meant to ask why doesn't Sun lift some of the restrictions on the
> > *source license* for the VM.
> 
> The optimal situation would be to have a compiler and JVM
> which were as ubiquous, stable, and reliable as gcc has been. I take
> it that a problem has been that Java is not stable, like C is,
> and therefore its difficult to motivate volunteers to write
> code for a moving target, and those who try get overworked.
> 
> Case in point: I would like to use Kaffe for research. I cannot
> because it doesn't support JNI. I will probably hack something
> up as a temporary solution until it does, but this is not
> something I want to spend time doing.
> 
> The bottom line is that the free software community has
> been laregely unsucessful in building reliable development tools
> for Java, no thanks to Sun. This cant be helping Java's momentum. But
> you can bet people in Redmond dont mind.

Have you ever tried to discuss this with the people of Javasoft
at the "Java Developer Connection" (http://developer.javasoft.com)?
It hurts, but Sun/Javasoft too earns it's money with Micro$oft
customers and not with free systems.

Java development currently goes very fast. It's a commercial race
condition between Sun an M$. Volunteers don't even have a chance
to hold this speed. The Linux OS project showed that it's very
important to activate volunteer resources at the universities:
Students are multipliers! If they are convinced they will bring the
benefits to the companies. But if they only find M$ products for
Java on their machines, they will learn to use JBuilder, J++ or
whatever and will go to confess

  Java == Microsoft

In future no-one will care about M$'s own point of view concerning
incompatible implementation details (like JNI). M$ takes over everything
of worth it can get. 

We should find volunteers at the universities and convince them to
use and support free development software projects. Micro$ofts
position is not a quality position. It's a strategic position made
with much, much money. And everyone who doesn't think about using
their software, serves them and helps them to get the whole world
follow M$ like a guru, no matter what they will do in the future.

IMO, Linux and a free, stable, fast Java implemtation had the
very best chances to beat Microsoft, because it's really good (if
not best). It's our choice and responsibility to use M$ or
something else.

I have to care for my family, so I have to earn enough money. My
job is software development for 8.5 hours a day and when I'm back
home, my wife and my children want me and I want them. When I was
a student (computer science) I invested about 4-6 hours a day just
to push my own development ideas into program code. This time has
passed...

Frank.
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