Replace Oracle Java, Google Will Use OpenJDK on Android N
Google has just announced that the next version of the Android mobile operating system or Android N will not use the Java Application Programming Interfaces.
This step is touted as Google's attempt to fight Oracle because both are now at odds over the issue of copyright infringement over the use of the Java API on Android so far. Instead, Google will use OpenJDK, an API that is still controlled by Oracle, but it is open source.
According to Business Insider, the dispute began when Oracle sued Google for the use of Java APIs that were considered illegal because Google did not pay royalties to Oracle.
Google acknowledges that Android does indeed use the Java API, but they argue that the API cannot be patented because it is only a means for two applications to communicate with one another.
Initially, Google had won the lawsuit filed by Oracle. However, recently the court turned sides and further supports Oracle. On the other hand, Oracle is suing Google for $6 billion over its actions using the Java API.
Java itself is a programming language created by Sun Microsystems that has been acquired by Oracle. Java is indeed one of the most widely used programming languages in the world. On Android itself, most applications are written in the Java programming language.
On Android N, Google said it would use OpenJDK, JDK from Oracle, which is a licensed open source and leaves APIs that are paid for from Oracle. Google also said that Android is a platform that is open source so that it is in line with OpenJDK which is licensed as open source.
This API change reported by Google will make it easy for developers to create applications on the Android operating system because the code used will be simpler than before.
The current Android implementation is based on Java 7, while OpenJDK already supports the latest version, Java 8. So using OpenJDK provides a way to use the latest features such as lambda which is a feature used to make functionality into data that can be passed into a method as a parameter. It is expected to provide quality improvements to Android developers.
