Re: [Pan-users] What tells Pan where to save??

[Rhialto]

On Tue 27 Nov 2012 at 19:45:34 +0000, Duncan wrote:
> I guess I could add a java VM, but last I checked, building it pulls in 
> at least cups (which in turn pulls in its own deps), which I don't need 

In fact, to build java, you need a working java. The Sun sources have
(apparently deliberately) been made extra difficult to bootstrap.
Even though the core bytecode interpeter is written in C (or C++), the
build system doesn't simply build that first to bootstrap a runtime
system, which could in turn be used to compile libraries and stuff.
The difficulties already start with the "self-extracting" sources, which
need java to run (and hence extract). (After that, what is actually
happening starts to get more difficult to follow, but it doesn't seem
like the C code is compiled first.)

For these stupid practical reasons, it has taken ages before NetBSD got
a java environment that one can build natively. And even the first time
around you need some bootstrapping with a Linux JRE running in a Linux
emulation, or something like that.

Entirely un-free.
"Build once, run anywhere" is more like "run only where Sun has deigned
to supply a java system". And Oracle is even worse.

-Olaf.
-- 
___ Olaf 'Rhialto' Seibert  -- The Doctor: No, 'eureka' is Greek for
\X/ rhialto/at/xs4all.nl    -- 'this bath is too hot.'