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Subject: Re: [WebConsole] Dropping 1.4 builds ?
From: Marcel Offermans <marcel.offermans@luminis.nl>
In-Reply-To: <ABD1D7E1-744E-4922-9A42-020654A86C96@adobe.com>
Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2012 13:39:46 +0100
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References: <ABD1D7E1-744E-4922-9A42-020654A86C96@adobe.com>
To: <dev@felix.apache.org>

On Jan 4, 2012, at 13:16 PM, Felix Meschberger wrote:

> I recently converted the Web Console code to use Generics and added =
the target jsr14 flag for the compiler to build Java 1.4 compatible =
class files. All fine and well.
>=20
> until ... JDK 7 comes along ...
>=20
> I just learned that the JDK 7 compiler does not support jsr14 compiled =
class files any longer and runs havock...
>=20
> So, there are basically three options:
>=20
>  (a) drop Java 1.4 support completely compiling to Java 5 class files
>  (b) drop generics (and have Java 1.4 sources again)
>  (c) have multiple build profiles
>=20
> I would like to keep generics. They make a lot of things nicer. But =
then we alienate the embedded market ...
>=20
> Where shall we go ?=20


Let's start by concluding that this problem is a lot bigger in scope =
than just web console. As Holger recently pointed out on this list, the =
OSGi Alliance relied on an appearantly unsupported and (since Java 7) =
dead "-target jsr14" option. It would be nice to learn how they intend =
to solve this issue before we do, because it probably makes sense to =
align our decision with theirs.

If I personally had to make a decision between supporting Java 1.4 or =
using generics, I would keep support for Java 1.4. In the end we build =
our software for our users and I know there are quite a few of them that =
run on embedded platforms that don't yet support Java 5.

Greetings, Marcel