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Eclipse joins Sun Java group

Stephen Shankland Former Principal Writer
Stephen Shankland worked at CNET from 1998 to 2024 and wrote about processors, digital photography, AI, quantum computing, computer science, materials science, supercomputers, drones, browsers, 3D printing, USB, and new computing technology in general. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces. His first big scoop was about radioactive cat poop.
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Stephen Shankland

The Eclipse Foundation, the open-source programming tool project that's had a sometimes-fractious relationship with Java creator Sun Microsystems, has joined the Java governance system Sun established years ago.

The foundation announced the move Friday, noting in a press release that Eclipse is used in several Java projects administered by that governance system, called the Java Community Process. Eclipse initially was established as a Java programming tool project by IBM, which has been a Java ally but didn't always see eye to eye with Sun about the technology's fate.

The move shouldn't raise eyebrows, said Mike Milinkovich, the Eclipse Foundation's executive director, in a blog posting Thursday.

"There are some who are going to view this story through the lens of the historically frosty relationship with Sun, and try to color this as somehow controversial," Milinkovich said. "But I really don't see any basis for controversy here. Sun has always acknowledged that Eclipse is part of the larger Java ecosystem, and we've always used JCP specifications. It's simply time to recognize that."