Category Archives: Oracle

Self-Taught IT?

Posted by fshtank on

I love the premise of this article: Just because you are a Self-Taught Developer/IT Guy doesn’t make you any less authentic in your field than someone with a BS or an MS.

Planning vs. Acting is procrastination.  Just go after it.

via @DZone: https://dzone.com/articles/do-you-have-self-taught-imposter-syndrome?edition=304154&utm_source=Daily%20Digest&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dd%202017-06-09 

With the high cost and low quality of College courses these days, it has surpassed the threshold of not being with the value it once offered.

 

Oracle Charging for Java SE Starting in 2017?

Posted by fshtank on
I get DZone push content sent to my inbox everyday, as a one stop shop to keep up with Java-World news. Today’s blog list had this interesting heading:

The Sky Is Falling: Oracle (Might) Want Your Money for Java SE in 2017

The Rub of the article is :

Oracle spinning up their License Management Services (LMS) division focused on “chasing down people for payment.”

 
[UPDATE 2016-12-23]: A blog published in response to any concerns or outrage: Being Wary Does Not Hurt Java
 
I look at software like music or movies. That group full-on tried to put the up and coming players in a digital purgatory box: Apple iTunes, Real Networks now-defunct Rhapsody, Amazon, Microsoft, now-defunct Tower Records.
 
The DRM Promoters were were afraid of copy-right infringement, and frankly they are right. This is how the artists get paid.
 
The same is true of software. My time invested in a product should reflect a reasonable return. I have misgivings about Oracle, but they have a right to seek payment for reasonable use.
 
Before you think I’ve lost my mind, the blog makes my point – the licensing will probably go after those running embedded Java without paying for it – like Cash Registers. Those of us doing software development will probably run as we always do: download and run so we can make software that can be sold … and ha-ha, Oracle can grab their cut.
 

There are options:

  • Open JDK – this has the newest development that will go into the upcoming SE-JDK
  • Purchase a license of IntelliJ: my most recent personal license was $89USD for 2 years, and it is a quality tool
  • Shift gears to another language, like, oh, C# (Microsoft is starting to open up a bit), C++, Javascript on Node.JS
 
My non-prophetic prediction: Anyone getting charged to run SE will be for a product in production, not for those doing development of said tools – which makes Oracle money :). Oracle is on the board of Eclipse (Free OSS), they still have an interest in NetBeans even after shifting it over to Apache – Oracle has tools they sell/provide based on NetBeans.
 
We, the developers, are the people that make Java a viable tool in the wild. They will take care with this community.

Netbeans IDE Moving to Apache?

Posted by fshtank on

I read the news of Netbeans moving to Apache with less enthusiasm than a majority of the Java community from what I read:

For the me, the headline that summarizes my mood concerning this move comes from ZDNet:

So I apologize in advance for being a little black rain cloud here.  It is not my desired, nor normal approach.

Now I’m not a heavy NetBeans user, having paid for personal License of IntelliJ, but I just like NetBeans, having used it in the past.  My concern is rooted in the model by which Netbeans will grow and advance under Apache. It will rely on the number of Open Source Developers who will jump at the chance to make this IDE all that it can be.  But free-time motivation can get sucked away into other things easily (as a passionate developer with a family, I know this all too well.)

The IntelliJ model is one of pure motivation around making a great IDE for a great price and getting individual developers enthused to sell it to their Enterprises who buy additional, slightly more expensive licenses, for their developers.  Its an organic process but we’ve made noise at my company, the head Architect saw its use in the community elsewhere, and suddenly Eclipse is not the only endorsed developer option. It’s a beautiful thing.

JetBrains, with IntelliJ’s polish and sheen, is mostly driven by developer dollars (like myself) voting “we like it”.  They have a dedicated, passionate, paid staff at JetBrains over in Czechoslovakia. And they keep cranking out tools beyond IntelliJ, such as WebStorm or PyCharm among others.  There is also community driven plugin development as well.

The Eclipse foundation is a behemoth, to say the least. It has a board of directors from many large companies who donate two full-time resources to Eclipse development in addition to paying a $100,000 [Platinum], $25,000 [Gold] or $5,000 [Silver] per year sponsorship.  It makes me think of an old American Express ad campaign: “Membership has its privileges.”

Eclipse is free and open, yes, but also consider that these sponsoring companies are also using Eclipse as a base for their own developer tools:

These are companies with a vested interest that Eclipse remains viable, thereby ensuring Eclipse’s future to the best of their ability.

I also consider Apache, a foundation which excels at creating great developer tools, app servers, HTTP server, frameworks, etc.  They crank out serious quality.  It too has its own corporate sponsorship program which parallel’s the Eclipse model with the exception not to have a full-time dedicated developer among corporate sponsors.

But here’s my question: what about the Apache model is appealing that it makes people think NetBeans will live long and prosper?  Adding to the dark cloud inside is what happened with OpenOffice. LibreOffice has taken much of the mind-space, AND developers.  So amidst what one article calls a “Developer Drought” Apache is going to shut it down.

Consider NetBeans standalone for the moment: what it has going for it is community enthusiasm.  That could remain infectious and even grow to a larger group of developers.  Heck, it would even be fun to work on a Development IDE.  Dream of things you’d like, propose it – and go do it.  That’s what Eclipse has done – it has every imaginable plugin under the sun.

In it’s current state, how many developers are using NetBeans?

The one thing these show is NetBeans is 3rd.  Maybe open sourcing this IDE for enthusiastic developers to crank on it may be the best for it. NetBeans has been slowly moving  in the Oracle back room for sometime, and giving it to a community that actually WANTS to do something with may be what the doctor ordered.

Eclipse and IntelliJ both have a well funded, enthusiastic eco-system around them.   If NetBeans’ community enthusiasm and energy is in place, it will have measures of success – even Wild success.  If like OpenOffice, the “love” has moved on elsewhere, then it is just being sent to a Pasture called Apache, and it will eventually become it’s grave.   I hope its the exact opposite.