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Java on Mac OSX: The Ball is in Oracle's Court

10.22.2010
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In response to an email voicing concerns from a developer at Portico Systems, Steve Jobs commented on the news that Java will be deprecated on Mac OSX

Sun (now Oracle) supplies Java for all other platforms. They have their own release schedules, which are almost always different than ours, so the Java we ship is always a version behind. This may not be the best way to do it.

It's clear that it's all down to Oracle from here, and the sooner they send a clear message to the community about their support, the better. On the plus side, Jobs makes a very good point that Java shouldn't need to lag behind. The cleanest way for Java on the Mac to work is to have it distributed just like the Windows versions.

Comments

Armin Ehrenreich replied on Fri, 2010/10/22 - 8:12am

1. This comment says nothing. I could have made it too.
2. I seriously doubt that this comment is real.

Otengi Miloskov replied on Fri, 2010/10/22 - 9:42pm

This is a back-stab to the Apple Java community but anyway we can not expect something good from apple this days. The days of glory with apple are over. Anyway Now is Oracle job to continue with Apple Java as with Windows Java, Oracle any word from you?. It really sucks the communication with Oracle. Geez how we can save Java from this idiot company.

Alessandro Santini replied on Sun, 2010/10/24 - 6:54pm

Well, everybody was cheering at Oracle saving Java from the IBM devil. In all fairness, I am starting hoping for the end of Java, even though it won't be Apple to start it.

 

Claude Lalyre replied on Mon, 2010/10/25 - 5:10am

"starting hoping for the end of Java"

Aaaah !
Vade retro Satanas !

Alessandro Santini replied on Mon, 2010/10/25 - 5:31am in response to: Claude Lalyre

I did not necessarily imply Java as a programming language. After the end of something there is space for something better. The Java industry is indeed poisoned.

Michael Urban replied on Mon, 2010/10/25 - 12:25pm in response to: Otengi Miloskov

Even though in the past I have been very harsh on Apple, I don't know that I can blame them for not wanting to maintain Java anymore. From a business perspective, it is probably the best decision for them. I mean lets face it, all of the following are true:

  1. Apple's target audiance is not developers--even though a lot of developers really like their Macs.
  2. Not very many home users use desktop Java applications. With the decline of GNUtella (thanks to viruses, fake downloads, and trojaned downloads), Limewire is not nearly as popular as it used to be. And Limewire was one of the few killer desktop apps written in Java.
  3. OS X is largerly irrevalent in the application server playing field--mostly thanks to Apple missing the boat when it comes to server virtualization, plus the high cost of Apple Xserve units. I have never worked for a single company that was serving their Web applications off of OS X.
  4. Although Java desktop apps written in Swing are quite popular in business and scientific circles, Apple has failed to gain very much mindshare in either market. So even here, the demand for Java on Mac is very low.

Given all of these facts, from a business perspective, Apple is probably making the best business decision that they can by dropping Java from OS X. Almost no one uses desjtop Java applications on Macs. And from an application server perspective, it doesn't make sense for Apple to maintain Java on a platform that almost no one is using as a server platform.

Dudu Zerah replied on Mon, 2010/10/25 - 12:47pm in response to: Claude Lalyre

Haha you said everything!

Khent Johnson replied on Fri, 2011/09/02 - 3:12pm

Well, that's a good insight you showed up there. I believe Steve Jobs knows what the best for his products is and I admire his intellectual capacity. Anyway, I like java and it is currently one of the most popular programming languages in use, particularly for client-server web applications. GAR Labs

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