In the end all rumors have been confirmed and today will mark the day when Java source code has been opened, under the GPLv2. Details to follow at www.sun.com/opensource/java, where a live webcast with Jonathan Schwartz and Rich Green will be held at 9:30AM PT (that is 6:30PM CET, so it means I will probably be traveling at that time).
With respect to the fears I have expressed about the core libraries being GPL as well, it looks like—according to Tim Bray— that they will use the Classpath Exception clause to avoid code using them to be infected by the GPL. I can’t even begin to wonder what the actual legal consequences of this are, but the spirit—if not the wording— of the clause seem pretty clear to me.
Technorati Tags: gpl, lgpl, open source java, simon phipps, open source business academy, classpath, tim bray.
Yes, we’ve used the Classpath exception both for the Java SE class libraries and also for all of Glassfish (Java EE RI). I’m sure I’ll get questions on all this in Milan!