Java Happenings

A Forrester Research report suggests that Oracle Corp. is now limiting Java usage to the enterprise community. Meanwhile, an intellectual property (IP) expert has uncovered that Google Inc. copied Java code for Android without Oracle's permission. Finally, Micro Focus International Plc announced that it is extending its COBOL platform to Java and the Microsoft Corp. Windows Azure cloud platform.

Focal Points:

• According to a pair of analysts at Forrester, Oracle is limiting the development of Java by focusing future development on enterprise use. Unlike Sun, which had a broad focus for Java, including embedded systems, enterprise middleware, mobile devices, and PCs, Oracle will focus primarily on enterprise middleware, said the report. As a result, Java will be regarded as a specialized server-side language for Oracle and IBM Corp. enterprise customers, Forrester added. To formulate the report, Forrester interviewed 12 organizations involved with Java, including the Apache Software Foundation, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, and Red Hat, Inc. Forrester also surveyed Java users via the comment section of its blog site and in person at events such as JavaOne. Oracle declined to comment on the report, according to Forrester.
• An IP expert closely examined the Android code and uncovered 43 instances where Google copied Java code in the most recent versions without permission. The files are found in Froyo, which is Android 2.2, and Gingerbread, which is Android 2.3. Additionally, the IP expert found 37 files in the Android code that include notices saying the code is proprietary to Sun. However, a developer who writes for ZDnet argued that seven of the files are test code, and that those files had been deleted from Android either late last year or in January. The remaining files are in a directory used for native code audio drivers for a particular chip set and do not ship with Android. Yet, the IP expert says that the test code actually contains code related to security, and that there are many Android devices that shipped with that code, as well as with the code from the remaining files. Although the files are not in the current Android code, they were in two versions that currently make up more than half of the Android phones in use, he added. Oracle filed a lawsuit in August against Google claiming that Android infringes on Java copyrights that Oracle acquired from Sun. If Google is found guilty, it could be required to pay Oracle a licensing fee for each handset made that uses Android.
• Micro Focus announced Micro Focus Visual COBOL R3, which enables COBOL applications to be deployed to the Java Virtual Machine as well as to Microsoft Azure. According to Micro Focus, developers can work in either the Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 or Eclipse integrated development environments (IDEs). They can then deploy COBOL applications to multiple platforms from a single source without performing platform-specific work.  The new release features C# and Java-like constructs to make the language easy to learn in hours, not days, for new customers, said the vendor. Visual COBOL R3 also offers the Visual COBOL Development Hub, a tool for remote Linux and UNIX servers that enables developers to use COBOL on the desktop to compile and debug code remotely, Micro Focus added.

Experton Group believes Java is more ubiquitous than Oracle would like to believe and it will be problematic for Oracle to restrict Java usage within the enterprise. Moreover, should Oracle persist in its approach, it will fork the product and drive customers and developers into the .NET camp. Both are unintended consequences that Oracle should not like to see occur. As to Android’s use of Java code, IT executives should not be concerned. The companies will resolve the issue over time and customers should be able to avoid any negative impacts. The new version of Micro Focus’ Visual COBOL R3 will make it easier for enterprises to encapsulate their legacy COBOL code and then update and deploy the applications to new or different platforms. IT executives that still have to deal with legacy COBOL code should include usage of the Micro Focus software as an additional option they can employ when modernizing their data center and development operations.