Oracle unveils plans for MySQL, GlassFish, NetBeans, and OpenOffice

Oracle lays out plans for Sun's software, reserves right to change its mind as business needs warrant

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Oracle updated its FAQ overview of the impending Sun acquisition to address some important questions about the fate of Sun's software assets beyond Java and Solaris.

To be completely honest, none of Oracle's plans come as a surprise.  And at the end of the day, the FAQ is not legally binding, nor is it a commitment to deliver products, code, or functionality. Oracle clearly states this at the end of the FAQ. This too is completely understandable.  Oracle, like any other company with shareholders, will have to evaluate and adjust its plans and intentions on a product-by-product basis over time. Oracle has a fiduciary duty to do so.

[ Also on InfoWorld: "Oracle sheds new light on future of Sun technologies" | Stay up to speed with the open source community with InfoWorld's Technology: Open Source newsletter. ]

In the FAQ, potentially released to appease the EU and critics of the deal, Oracle tackles its plans for MySQL as follows:

Oracle plans to spend more money developing MySQL than Sun does now. Oracle expects to continue to develop and provide the open source MySQL database after the transaction closes. Oracle plans to add MySQL to Oracle's existing suite of database products, which already includes Berkeley DB, an open source database. Oracle also currently offers InnoDB, an open source transactional storage engine and the most important and popular transaction engine under MySQL. Oracle already distributes MySQL as part of our Enterprise Linux offering.

This position makes complete sense as MySQL and the Oracle DB are more complementary than competitive. I doubt that this assurance from Oracle will help Monty, Florian, RMS and others opposed to Oracle's ownership of MySQL get past their fears.

Not unexpectedly, Oracle plans to keep GlassFish around, since it is the reference implementation for Java EE: