“It is strange to argue for ensuring compatibility in Java by
keeping implementations non-free. Even if you accept the choice of
values (compatibility above freedom) this idea is based on, which I
don’t, it simply won’t do the job.”
“It was Microsoft that wanted to make incompatible changes in
Java. Microsoft can afford to write its own implementation of any
programming language–they do not really need to use Sun’s code. So
if you choose to run Sun’s non-free Java implementation on your own
machine, that won’t stop Microsoft from doing anything it really
wants to do.”
“The best way to help the users discourage incompatible
changes in Java is to put the users in control. This is what free
software does. If you are using free software, no one can impose an
incompatibility on you, because you can take it out if you care
to.“