On 5/19/06, Endre Stølsvik <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
PPS: Why does Sun really bother to pour money into Java at all? The reason, I've come to understand, _was_ that they then could sell a bunch of their big-iron boxes to companies when the small intel-servers couldn't cope with a success of their developed java code. That argument is gone some years ago - so what's really in it for Sun, other than prestige? Regards, Endre.
Replace "big-iron boxes" (which Sun still produces and can still sell) with "lots of cheap AMD Opteron boxes running Opensolaris" AND, incresingly, services. According to Schwartz, Sun will nowadays sell software and services (maintenance, bugfixes, etc) to corporations embracing the open java platform. I think he's right. I don't know, however, if that business model will generate enough revenue to maintain the current Sun infrastructure. I hope so, and I wish they promoted the commercial StarOffice code more. But hey, WTF do I know. :) See: Sun CEO defends value of Java http://news.com.com/1606-2_3-6073463.html In other words, Red Hat proves that you can sell subscription services, maintenance, support and consulting/integration and still make a profit on top of the "free" linux world. Sun wants to do the same on top of OpenSolaris and/or Java (not necessarily together). FC PS: They could also win a lot by selling the java brand and logo placement, to cellphone manufacturers, for instance.
