Over the last few years, modularity for Java has been an active discussion topic. From the (now defunct) JSR 277 to the recognition of JSR 291 and the ongoing JSR 294, modularity is seen as a necessary step in Java's evolution. Even future JVM-based languages like Scala are considering modularity. So, what does modularity mean, and why should you care?
InfoQ recently sat down with Peter Kriens of the OSGi Alliance to learn more about OSGi. Kriens discussed OSGi's origins in the mobile space, it's integration with Eclipse, the current integration work with Spring, and the future R5 specification. He also discussed the ongoing debate over OSGi and JSR 277, and gave his perspective on what an ideal solution would be for modularity at the JVM level.
Since the last bundle.update, a number of interesting events have occurred in the OSGi and modular Java space. JSR 294 has been (automatically) marked as inactive, the Enterprise Expert Group has released draft 4, WebSphere will allow direct running of OSGi applications and upcoming OSGi conferences have early bird discounts and call for speakers finishing soon.
It's been a month since OSGi 4.2 was released. What's been happening in the OSGi space since then?
Over the past month there has been a lot of debate on the current state of the Java Modularity working group (JSR 294). Although the JSR tries to find common ground between different module systems (notably Sun's Project Jigsaw and OSGi), the current set of proposals are overly complex and introduce the world's first concept of a meta-module system. Can the Simple Module System save JSR294?
Peter Kriens, technical director of the OSGi alliance, gave a presentation on the upcoming OSGi 4.2 release at the UK OSGi Users Group. The event was recorded, and the video is now available. OSGi 4.2 is expected to be released to the public by the end of August 2009 and includes a number of new features.
Following up from an earlier post about modularising the JDK (which InfoQ covered earlier), Mark Reinhold posted the announcement of Project Jigsaw as part of the OpenJDK. Is this the death of JSR277?
Last month we asked whether Sun were listening about OSGi; at JavaOne, it was clear that many others have. Not only are all of the main J2EE engines now OSGi-enabled, but Spring launched their OSGi-based Spring Source Application Platform. Fortunately, a number of positive changes have occurred behind the scenes with JSR277; read on for what's been happening.
The latest salvo in the discussion of JSR 277, JSR 291, and OSGi appeared last week in the form of a post by Glyn Normington, spec lead for JSR 291 and Expert Group member for JSR 277. He is concerned that the Expert Group has not been presented with a strawman yet and that the Expert Group will end up merely rubber stamping the strawman rather than discussing it in detail and making changes.
