I'm trying to find evidence for the definition of the "core Java APIs". Oracle
wants this to be a very small set. Google would like it to be large enough to
include all 37 contested APIs.
I've provided several high profile examples
where peoplebasically say that the core APIs are the ones needed to pass the
TCK. IOW the core APIs are the ones needed in order to call an implementation
"Java". That set includes the 37 APIs Oracle is claiming Google infringed.
It
is also very well documented. There are no fuzzy boundaries and no tricky
lawyer word-mangling.
If the court accepts this TCK-based definition for
"core APIs" then Google should win on the API claims because of Sun's promise
that the Java language was free to use (and this freedom includes the core
APIs).
My point is what you yourself said:
To have a
conforming implementation you need to implement the java core
libraries.
So to see what the Java core libraries are we can look
at what APIs people were including when they tried to make conforming
implementations.
I know of 3 open-sources attempts: OpenJDK, GNU Classpath,
and Harmony. All three of them say they are implementing the "core Java
libraries" and all three of them implemented all the APIs that Google is accused
of infringing plus a whole lot more.
In general, the more APIs and
libraries that are considered to be part of the core, the better it is for
Google. If the court accepts my reasoning then Google has a very good chance of
winning on the API claims regardless of what the jury decides.
Oracle's
lawyers are going to try very hard to make the set of "core APIs" be as small as
possible. ISTM that it might be hard for them to explain why people have to
implement non-core APIs in order to call their implementation "Java".
I think
that is something that even Judge's and juries can understand clearly. In
addition, all three open-source groups who were making re-implementations said
they were implementing the "core libraries". Therefore this is clearly the
definition that was being used by the industry.
--- Our job is to
remind ourselves that there are more contexts
than the one we’re in now — the one that we think is reality.
-- Alan Kay [ Reply to This | Parent | # ]
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