Android = Java

The Java community is now swamped with discussions about Oracle's patent suit against Google's Android platform. I've been contributing my opinion in several places, but there is one critical topic that needs repeating the same comments everywhere... so, this blog spills the beans once and completely. The 8th Millennium Problem: Android = Java? The announcement that a researcher had proved P != NP, a few days ago, caused lots of enthusiasm in the programming community - at least for a couple days, until the first reviewers showed several flaws in the proof. I have studied the subject in my CS grad, but admittedly I don't know the advanced math to follow these proofs (P = NP? is one of the Clay Institute's Millennium Problems for a good reason.) So, let's talk about a much simpler equation: Is Android equivalent to Java? Notice I didn't say equal, I've said equivalent, just like in P = NP. Equivalent class/bytecode formats In many levels, the Android = Java equivalence is obvious. Android apps are written in the Java(TM) language, and compiled by the JDK's javac compiler (or equivalent, like ECJ). This produces standard Java bytecode (.class files). These files are then converted into Android's .dex, for all practical purposes just a different file format for Java classes. Yes it's a better format; an improvement over Sun's ~1994 design. But you can also take a GIF image an...

Date: August, 17 2010
Url: http://www.java.net/blog/opinali/archive/2010/08/17/android-java

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