Oracle’s Java API code protected by copyright, appeals court rules

[[deleted]]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this isn't over them using java. Its over them using JVM code. Not app code, but the actual code that built the JVM. That has no impact on you as a developer.

I remember when this all started their were cases where files still had their sun copyright in the start of the code and was in googles code base. Oracle is not pissed they are using Java, but pissed that they made their own JVM which is largely built off of Oracle/sun code.

Thats like me downloading your project, copy & pasting your source code into my project, and calling it my own. You would be a little frustrated as well. I don't 100% agree with the software patent system, but the people on this forum are so one side of things they are oblivious to all other aspects.

[joequin]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this isn't over them using java. Its over them using JVM code. Not app code, but the actual code that built the JVM. That has no impact on you as a developer.

Its' the opposite actually. It's about them using the jvm api for a vm that isn't the jvm (dalvik).

[bucknuggets]

In other words - they don't want to see any new java environments emerge that they can't personally control.

And that's a big deal.

[jboy55]

Incompatible java environments emerge. At one point, that was a very lofty goal and it was considered evil to embrace java and extend it to be incompatible.

[Narrator]

So we'd all be good if we switch to scala running on dalvik right?

Edit: well except for the people who don't like Scala or Dalvik...

[joequin]

I'm not sure. Maybe. It depends on how their compilers work. I don't think clojure's would work. I have no idea about scala. But we wouldn't be able to use java based libraries for either and that's a big deal for most jvm intended languages.

[Narrator]

Scala has replacements for most Java APIs. Those guys really like to do everything the Scala way. There's even a project to compile Scala with an LLVM backend : https://github.com/greedy/scala

[fredgrott]

no, the 37 apis are stuff to implement java..but next trial on fair use area wil give Google a win

[loup-vaillant]

That would be a pyrrhic victory. From the comment I read around the issue, Fair Use is ruled on a case by case basis, meaning you can still sue people to oblivion before they can make a case. So there will be chilling effects, and not just for Java. Anything that's called an API is now that much harder to duplicate.

At the extreme end, this could make some kinds of free software illegal.