IcedTea

IcedTea is a joint project initiated by the Linux distributor Red Hat to develop free Java platform software .

The project is working on the following products:

OpenJDK: Free implementation of the Java Platform, Standard Edition (Java SE), which is maintained in a variant for version 6 and one for version 7 of the Java SE specification. IcedTea's OpenJDK development branches have less restrictive code requirements than those of the Sun repositories, with IcedTea itself also contributing to the official branch. IcedTea versions can be created with the GNU Build System (Autotools) (using a wrapper around the make files of the main version). With the IcedTea versions, the replacement of remaining proprietary remnants in the official OpenJDK code was completed for the first time.
Web browser add-on module: Free Java add-on module for ( NPAPI -capable) web browsers . As the first of its kind, it is also available on 64-bit Linux systems.
Netx: a free implementation of Java Web Start

Since Sun's browser module and web start solution are still proprietary despite repeated promises of disclosure, they are the only free ones of their kind.

History, merits

The project was officially launched in June 2007. The original goal was to create an executable, completely free version of the OpenJDK that can be created without the help of proprietary software. This was necessary because the rights to some code parts were not entirely owned by the original manufacturer Sun Microsystems and therefore some parts were only available in compiled form and had to be replaced in order to obtain a completely free version. For this purpose, a new OpenJDK version was created in a separate development branch, which was completed with code from the GNU Classpath project (free implementation of the standard class libraries), where components that remained proprietary in Sun's code had left gaps that had not yet been filled, and can be created with the GNU Compiler for Java (GCJ) (- afterwards also with the self-built official Java compiler javac ). The venture was successful; In November 2007, IcedTea packages could be added to Fedora 8.

With the signing of the Sun Contributor Agreement and the OpenJDK Community TCK License by Red Hat on November 5, 2007, the IcedTea project can now contribute to the official branch of OpenJDK.

After IcedTea first implemented the implementation of Java SE 7, a variant called IcedTea6 for version 6 of Java SE was added in April 2008.

Since the packages created by IcedTea have passed the official tests from Sun's Technology Compatibility Kit (TCK, specifically the Java Compatibility Kit, JCK) since June 2008, they are now allowed to bear the protected designation OpenJDK and the “Java Compatible” logo.

In Ubuntu 8.04 and (April 24, 2008 published) Fedora 9 (13 May 2008) was the first time included OpenJDK based on IcedTea6.

With version b10 of OpenJDK6 (March 2008) and version b53 of OpenJDK7 (April 2009), the official branch has now also replaced all (relevant) proprietary remnants.

Web links

official website (English)

swell

↑ jnlp.sf.net/netx
↑ mail.openjdk.java.net/pipermail/jdk6-dev/2009-June/000604.html
↑ www.sun.com/aboutsun/pr/2007-05/sunflash.20070508.3.xml ( Memento from February 4, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
↑ langel.wordpress.com/2008/04/04/icedtea6-11-released ( Memento from October 31, 2008 in the Internet Archive )

[1] .sf.net/netx

[2] .openjdk.java.net/pipermail/jdk6-dev/2009-June/000604.html

[3] www.sun.com/aboutsun/pr/2007-05/sunflash.20070508.3.xml ( Memento from February 4, 2010 in the Internet Archive )

[4] .wordpress.com/2008/04/04/icedtea6-11-released ( Memento from October 31, 2008 in the Internet Archive )