Les Mikesell wrote:
The bigger problem is distributing something that is not java compatable but executing it with the java name. Microsoft tried to promote an incompatible program that similarly fit their agenda with the java name and Sun successfully sued them over it. The fedora-shipped not-java program that executes with the java name does just as much damage and shouldn't be named java until it passes the compatibility tests. I'm surprised fedora's legal dept. allowed this abuse of a trademarked name.
That's because trademark does not apply to filenames. Sun doesn't consider classpath or GCJ as damage to Java in any way and has even used the same license classpath originally had for their new openjdk effort. IcedTea is a free and open source derivative of OpenJDK and included in Fedora 8 by default and Sun has continued to use that as a prototype to remove the binary encumbrances in their code. Once OpenJDK becomes completely open source, Fedora will include that by default.
Besides a compatible version of Java requires signing a test suite which until recently came with onerous restrictions that has been lifted and paved the way to better compatibility.
http://www.press.redhat.com/2007/11/05/red-hat-helps-advance-open-source-java/ Rahul
