Oracle ports DTrace to Oracle Linux
Oracle has ported one of its most coveted Solaris tools to the Linux platform, a real-time debugging tool called DTrace, though the company has made it officially available only for its own Oracle Linux distribution.
With the release of Oracle Linux 6.4, Oracle announced that participants in its Unbreakable Linux Network (ULN) -- available with a paid Oracle support license -- can download a copy of DTrace for Linux.
Many Linux developers and administrators have pined for a version of DTrace to run on Linux, a few even citing DTrace -- along with the ZFS (Zettabyte File System) -- as a major reason for not moving from Solaris to Linux. Red Hat's SystemTap, among other alternatives, duplicates some of DTrace's functionality for Linux, but doesn't offer the same level of granularity. Read more...
Google says it had Sun’s full support in building Android
Google built Android using parts of Java that didn't require a license and it had the full support of Sun Microsystems in doing so, a lawyer for Google said in court Tuesday.
"The source code in Android was written by Google engineers or taken from open source platforms that were available and open for use," attorney Robert Van Nest told the jury in Google's opening statement.
Sun's own chief executive, Jonathan Schwartz, congratulated Google when it released Android, saying it strapped a "set of rockets" to Java that would help ensure its success, Van Nest said. Read more...
HP CEO says open to licensing WebOS software
Hewlett-Packard Co sees the WebOS software it acquired from Palm running devices besides its own and is open to licensing the operating system, Chief Executive Leo Apotheker said.
"I happen to believe that WebOS is a uniquely outstanding operating system," said Apotheker, who was speaking at the D9 conference organized by the blog AllThingsD. "It's not correct to believe that it should only be on HP devices."
Asked if HP would consider licensing it to others, such as Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC Corp, Apotheker said, "It is certainly something we would entertain." Read more...
5 questions to ask before buying Microsoft licenses
Let's face it: Microsoft software licenses are expensive. And that's just the way the folks in Redmond want it. Otherwise, that $62 billion a year revenue stream might drop to a mere $52 billion.
But customers shouldn't cry for Microsoft. Instead, if they choose Microsoft products over cheaper open source alternatives, they should take a hard line in negotiations to get as much as they can for as little money as possible.
COST CONTROL: 5 tips for managing Microsoft licensing costs Read more...