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It's probably obvious to say this but Java 7 will be very telling for how Oracle is going to proceed. Java needs some punching-up if it's going to continue as a

It's probably obvious to say this but Java 7 will be very telling for how Oracle is going to proceed. Java needs some punching-up if it's going to continue as a go-to language (yes, I'm well aware of the trends away from Java and the general opinions here on HN - that doesn't change the fact that Java is one of the most deployed production languages around and will continue to be used/maintained for years to come).

bad_user 16y ago
> but Java 7 will be very telling for how Oracle is going to proceed Considering how the Java7 milestones / OpenJDK developments are going right now, I think you're going to be disappointed.
- Periodic 16y ago
  Would you care to elaborate? I'm about to move to a Java shop and for a long time I've just been taking the criticism of Java at face value. Now that I will have a stake in it I am really interested in what people who have been with Java a long time are seeing as the trends.
  - bad_user 16y ago
    If it suits your needs, you don't need trends to use it. And nonetheless, it has a vibrant open-source ecosystem. That said, in order for it to evolve, I fear a fork is needed (which for mobile apps, has already happened with Android).
  - locopati 16y ago
    I'll venture a guess - there hasn't been enough clear focus on what Java7 will be and there's been a long gap between 6 & 7 (4yrs versus 2yrs for previous versions). Combined with Oracle's acquisition of Sun, there are a lot of questions in the air. Hopefully, JavaOne in September will provide some answers. That said, Java is a good enough language and still quite powerful. You can do a lot of things that are possible in other languages, but the code isn't as concise. There are open-source libraries and frameworks for just about everything. Spring and Google have both taken up Sun's slack. Java's not going away any time soon because it's too widely used.
wmf 16y ago
Of course, if Java 7 tanks Oracle can just say that all the wrong decisions were made by Sun before the acquisition. Then Java 8 becomes the real test. Also, I think most open source people are happy with OpenJDK; only a small minority appear to care about the Harmony hypocrisy.

bad_user 16y ago

> but Java 7 will be very telling for how Oracle is going to proceed Considering how the Java7 milestones / OpenJDK developments are going right now, I think you're going to be disappointed.

Periodic 16y ago
Would you care to elaborate? I'm about to move to a Java shop and for a long time I've just been taking the criticism of Java at face value. Now that I will have a stake in it I am really interested in what people who have been with Java a long time are seeing as the trends.
- bad_user 16y ago
  If it suits your needs, you don't need trends to use it. And nonetheless, it has a vibrant open-source ecosystem. That said, in order for it to evolve, I fear a fork is needed (which for mobile apps, has already happened with Android).
- locopati 16y ago
  I'll venture a guess - there hasn't been enough clear focus on what Java7 will be and there's been a long gap between 6 & 7 (4yrs versus 2yrs for previous versions). Combined with Oracle's acquisition of Sun, there are a lot of questions in the air. Hopefully, JavaOne in September will provide some answers. That said, Java is a good enough language and still quite powerful. You can do a lot of things that are possible in other languages, but the code isn't as concise. There are open-source libraries and frameworks for just about everything. Spring and Google have both taken up Sun's slack. Java's not going away any time soon because it's too widely used.

wmf 16y ago

Of course, if Java 7 tanks Oracle can just say that all the wrong decisions were made by Sun before the acquisition. Then Java 8 becomes the real test. Also, I think most open source people are happy with OpenJDK; only a small minority appear to care about the Harmony hypocrisy.