At the conference, Sun CEO Jonathan Schwartz said he gave Richard Green, who heads the company's software division, the go-ahead to develop a plan for releasing Java's source code. Schwartz said that nothing will stop the open-source plan, which he contended will broaden usage of the Java language by developers. He said he also expects that the move will create new opportunities for the struggling computer maker.

Mark Driver, an analyst at Gartner Inc., argued that the open-source statements from Sun executives were made "for effect" and that the company doesn't necessarily plan to make Java open-source.

"They know they need to open-source Java to fulfill their larger promise to embrace open-source," Driver said. However, he added, Sun is fearful that providing open-source access to Java may prompt Microsoft Corp., The Apache Software Foundation or another vendor to create implementations that aren't compatible with the current version.

"They think the existing open-source model does not give them the guarantee of the lack of fragmentation," Driver said. "To their credit, they understand that Java is a success today because ... they have this giant stick and they can literally force compliance."

Jeff Kottke, a Java engineer at Dairyland Healthcare Solutions Inc. in Glenwood, Minn., welcomed the open-source idea. "It seems like open-source groups are able to put out better code that works faster and cleaner," he said.