Java licensing for commercial distribution
I'm thinking of using Java to write a program that I might try to sell one day. I'm new to Java so I have to ask, what types of tools/software/etc will I need (from development, to distribution, to user-friendly installation on users' machines) that have licenses that must be considered to make sure they allow sales and closed source code, etc.?
Should we assume the user already runs at least one Java app, and therefore has a fairly recent version of Java on their machine?
Also, do you have any recommendations for specific tools that are definitely suitable for this purpose?
Answer
For development, you will likely need an IDE. The top picks are:
- Eclipse (most features)
- IntelliJ (non-free)
- Netbeans (easiest to learn, imo)
- A few others with much lower popularity
For a free installation program, I've had the best experiences with IzPack, but there are others available. Similarly, to convert to a .exe for easy launching, I recommend Launch4J.
I don't think that its safe to assume that users have Java installed. Many will, but the versions will vary fairly widely, and the few that don't will tend to cause problems. Obviously, this may vary depending upon your intended audience (and how much control you have over them).