Testing Mono's compatibility

[Joshua Zeidner]

On 9/13/06, Josh Coffman <josh_coffman at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
> --- Joshua Zeidner <jjzeidner at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> I think I'm about to go OT...
>
> [snip]
> >
> >   Does it matter who is 'sponsoring' Mono?  The
> > entire project is
> > entirely dependent on the edicts of Microsoft Inc.
> >
>
> What is the history of the Java VM? I personally don't
> know. Did Sun implement it for every platform? Or were
> some platform VM's implemented outside of Sun?

  Hi Josh,

  Well the history that is relevant here is that the Java license was
deemed incompatible with the GPL, and thus did not ship with RH.
There is also the Blackdown project which has scarcely gained any
credibility in commercial venues.

  http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/index.html

  Open source + Java has been a contentious issue from day one.  I
gave a presentation at the Phoenix JUG on Java and Apache a while
back...

> >
> >   I've been through this one on the AZIPA list,  we
> > can have a 'look
> > what I can do!' conversation and start going through
> > all the great
> > things that technology X does compared to technology
> > Y,  but I am
> > discussing long term costs and manageability here.
> > In the long term
> > Mono is going to be a monster.  And that is how MS
> > wants it, they want

>
> .Net a platform based on IL (intermediary language)
> code running on a VM that JIT's the IL code to machine
> code at runtime. kinda like Java.

  Yes, I know... but there is much more to .NET than just IL and C#.
The Java VM is not only a bytecode( = IL ) interpreter, but a complex
functional gateway to the OS that manages the security and OS
abstraction problems in heavily networked and distributed
applications.  Java was not originally designed to be a systems
programming language.  Much of the VM code is designed to offer system
functionality that is OS neutral.  I expect the same promise from MS,
but I expect a completely different deliverable.  An important aspect
to consider is the strategic position of these two companies in the
marketplace.

>
> MONO is a port of that to linux. I don't know how they
> did it. But for me it's like a doorway to possibly
> transition my current skills gently to another OS. For
> others, they can test some .Net stuff without using
> windows.

  Would that be MS to Linux or vice-versa?  -jmz



>
> I don't know how they built WINE either, but it helps
> me sometimes. I like that about OSS. Freedom to build
> something that's useful.. or maybe just to see if you
> can do it.
>
> Anyway, a little long winded...
>
> -j
>


-- 
.0000. communication.
.0001. development.
.0010. strategy.
.0100. appeal.

JOSHUA M. ZEIDNER
IT Consultant

++power; ++perspective; ++possibilities;
( 602 ) 490 8006
jjzeidner at gmail.com