Charging that Oracle has willfully disregarded the licensing terms for its own Java technology, the Apache Software Foundation has called upon other members of the Java Community Process (JCP) to vote against the next proposed version of the language, should Oracle continue to impose restrictions on open-source Java use.

Oracle has announced it is purchasing Sun Microsystems for just over $7 billion. The official word from Oracle is that the purchase gives it two key assets - Java and Solaris - but open sourcerers will understandably be more interested in MySQL and OpenOffice.org.

If Oracle ends up owning Sun Microsystems, it's got a one-off opportunity to correct the mistakes of the past when it comes to working with open source on Java. The database giant should relax Sun's tight control over the Java Community Process (JCP), the body responsible for stewarding Java.

I don't think Oracle suing Google over the use of Java in Android has much to do with Android at all. I think it has everything to do with Oracle monetizing Java anyway it can. That spells big trouble for any company or developer who uses Java...

Oracle has filed a lawsuit against Google, charging that its Android phone software infringes Oracle patents and copyrights related to Java, Oracle said on Thursday.

On January 27, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison will share his vision for the Oracle-Sun Microsystems business combination. But before the Oracle webcast kicks off, industry rivals and partners are offering a key piece of advice to Ellison: Don’t mess up Sun’s Java programming language. Here’s the scoop — including perspectives from Red Hat’s middleware team.

Just a few months after Sun's acquisition by Oracle, James Gosling, inventor of the Java programming language and Chief Technology Officer of Sun's Developer Products group, has left the company

Today, IBM took the pragmatic decision to end hostilities over Apache Harmony and move on. This is clearly a good choice for IBM, and probably the best we could hope for Java. It does mean that Apache Harmony is effectively dead.

But frankly, Sun, now Oracle, have got away with murder.

Oracle's decision to block Apache's Harmony project from being recognized as standards-compliant falls afoul of the rules that govern Java standardization and has raised serious questions about the openness of the programming language. The non-profit ASF intends to fight back by using its seat in the Java Community Process (JCP) Executive Committee to vote against the approval of Java 7, the next major version of the programming language.