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{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
'''Blackdown Java''' was a [[Linux]] [[porting|port]] of [[Sun Microsystems]]'s [[Java virtual machine]], developed by a group of volunteers led by Juergen Kreileder, Steve Byrne, and Karl Asha, and included a team of volunteers from around the globe.<ref>{{cite web
| title = Java Linux Contact Information
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java-linux-contact.html
| accessdate = 2009-06-15
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070807032743/http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java-linux-contact.html
| archivedate=2007-08-07 }}</ref> The first version, 1.0.2, was released in October 1996,<ref>{{cite web
| title = Java-Linux Latest Information
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/Information.html
| accessdate = 2012-01-16
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/19961019171456/http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/Information.html
| archivedate = 1996-10-19
}}</ref> predating Sun's official Linux port.

Blackdown Java supported Linux on [[Instruction set|architectures]] that the official version did not, including [[SPARC]] and [[PowerPC]].<ref>{{cite web
| title = Java Platform 2 Version 1.3.x for Linux
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/jdk1.3-status.html
| accessdate = 2009-06-15
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070811200047/http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/jdk1.3-status.html
| archivedate = 11 August 2007
| url-status = dead
| df = dmy-all
}}</ref> The Blackdown project ended in August 2007, after Sun released an open source version of the [[HotSpot (virtual machine)|HotSpot]] JVM as part of [[OpenJDK]]; OpenJDK is available under the free [[GNU General Public License]].<ref>{{cite web
|last = Malinovich
|first = Alex
|title = Blackdown Java Retires
|url = http://www.the-love-shack.net/2007/08/30/blackdown-java-retires/
|accessdate = 2009-06-15
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090107065800/http://www.the-love-shack.net/2007/08/30/blackdown-java-retires/
|archive-date = 7 January 2009
|url-status = dead
|df = dmy-all
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| title = Java Linux Homepage
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/
| accessdate = 2009-06-15
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070912040844/http://www.blackdown.org/
| archivedate = 2007-09-12
}}</ref><ref>{{ cite web
| url= http://mail.openjdk.java.net/pipermail/announce/2007-May.txt | title = Open JDK is here!
| publisher=Sun Microsystems
| date = 8 May 2007
| accessdate=9 May 2007}}</ref> The Java software itself still exists on many mirrors.

At its close, Blackdown supported J2SE versions 1.4.2 on i386 and AMD64, 1.4.1 on SPARC, and 1.3.1 on PowerPC.<ref>{{cite web
| title = Java Platform 2 for Linux: Status and Information
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/index.html
| accessdate = 2009-06-15
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070809152807/http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/index.html
| archivedate = 9 August 2007
| url-status = dead
| df = dmy-all
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| title = Java 2 SE 1.4.2-03 Release Notes
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/README-142-03
| accessdate = 2009-06-15
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070807094453/http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/README-142-03
| archivedate = 7 August 2007
| url-status = dead
| df = dmy-all
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| title = Java Platform 2 Version 1.3.x for Linux
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/jdk1.3-status.html
| accessdate = 2009-06-15
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070811200047/http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/jdk1.3-status.html
| archivedate = 11 August 2007
| url-status = dead
| df = dmy-all
}}</ref> Work on J2SE 1.5.x support for x86, AMD64, SPARC, and PowerPC had been announced, but was never released.<ref>{{cite web
| title = Java Platform 2 Version 1.5.x for Linux
| url = http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/j2se1.5-status.html
| accessdate = 2009-06-15
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070627021922/http://www.blackdown.org/java-linux/java2-status/j2se1.5-status.html
| archivedate = 27 June 2007
| url-status = dead
| df = dmy-all
}}</ref>

In 1999 Sun Microsystems and [[Inprise]] announced a port of Java to Linux.<ref>{{cite web
| title = PRNewswire: Inprise Collaborates With Sun...on...Java(TM) 2 Platform For...Linux...
| url = http://www.linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=1999-12-07-047-04-PR
| accessdate = 2010-10-25
}}</ref> The port was based on Blackdown work, but the Blackdown team was not recognized or given any credit for the release. After some controversy,<ref>{{cite web
| title = LinuxGrrls: New JDK for Linux snubs Blackdown developers
| url = http://www.linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=1999-12-08-010-04-OP
| accessdate = 2010-10-25
|date = 1999-12-08
}}</ref> Sun publicly apologized to the Blackdown developers.<ref>{{cite news
| last1 = Orenstein | first1 = David
| date = 1999-12-08 | df = dmy
| url = https://www.computerworld.com/home/news.nsf/all/9912083sunlinux
| title = Sun apologizes to developers of Java on Linux
| work = [[Computerworld]]
| archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20001208114600/https://www.computerworld.com/home/news.nsf/all/9912083sunlinux 
| archivedate = 2000-12-08
}}</ref> The incident revealed that there were long standing problems between Sun and Blackdown.

Despite widespread confusion, Blackdown was neither [[free software]] nor [[open-source software]]; this was due to licensing restrictions from Sun Microsystems. Its binary redistribution policy allowed it to be pre-installed or included with many [[Linux distributions]] (e.g., [[Gentoo Linux]]){{citation needed|date=December 2011}}, whereas at the time, Sun Java's binary redistribution policy did not. Since Java 5, the Operating System Distributor License for Java (DLJ) met many Linux distributions' requirements, lessening the demand for the older Blackdown JVM.

The Blackdown team pioneered Sun's involvement with external, volunteer efforts. Steve Byrne, who was working at Sun at the time, worked with Sun legal to establish an agreement to license the Java test suite for a few Blackdown participants at no cost, and this was used to certify the Blackdown Java implementation as being 100% Java compatible.

The Blackdown team received recognition at the JavaOne conference in 1998 for the work that the team had been doing.

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

{{Java (Sun)}}

[[Category:Discontinued Java virtual machines]]

Blackdown Java - Revision history

imported>SSSB: /* top */Update {{use dmy dates}}, other minor clean-up