Likewise, Chris Fogel, a Java developer at a mobile wireless company that he asked not be named, predicted that an open-source Java would lead to wider adoption of the language.

Fogel and others point out that Java already has a community development process -- the Java Community Proc-ess -- that is overseen by Sun, which can approve or reject any proposed changes to the code. But it won't be clear how any open-source move will affect development "until it's actually out in the [open-source] community," Fogel said. That's when you really find out, he added.

Todd R. Weiss contributed to this report.