By making Java open-source, "it just grows the tent; it just grows the market opportunity," said Schwartz, who met with reporters and analysts Tuesday. "With respect to what happens next, that's the beauty of open-source; you just don't know."

His comments followed the announcement that Sun plans to open-source Java, made at the JavaOne event. But that announcement, made on stage at the Moscone Center by Richard Green, Sun's executive vice president of software, was short on details. "It isn't a question of whether, it is a question of how," Green said.

The answer to that question is of interest to Haroon Rafique, a systems developer at the University of Toronto, who doesn't want to see Java head off on different development paths once developers get access to it under whatever open-source plan Sun devises. "My concerns would be if they do open-source it -- and don't keep control over it -- then you are going to have competing implementations," said Rafique. The result would come at the cost of compatibility, he said.

A fork in code development is something Sun officials said they want to avoid, and they pointed to it as one of the problems they expect to address before releasing the code. They also didn't want to be pinned down on a time frame for any open-source move. Schwartz said the goal is to release it "as soon as possible."

But before an open-source release happens, Sun officials said, they have a lot of parties to consult. "This has to be done as a group," said Green. "The community process is critical."