GSoC 08 Ideas for GNU Classpath

[Andrew John Hughes]

Below is a list of suggested proposals for the GNU Classpath project.
We'd be grateful if you'd add them to the page, together with a link
to the 'live' wiki copy:

http://developer.classpath.org/mediation/GoogleSoC2008

<h3><a id="classpath"
href="http://www.gnu.org/software/classpath/";>GNU Classpath</a></h3>

<p>GNU Classpath is a GNU project to create a Free clean room
implementation of the core class libraries for use with virtual
machines and compilers for the java programming language.</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Support the <a
href="http://java.sun.com/javase/6/docs/jdk/api/attach/spec/index.html";>Java
Attach API</a></strong>
<p>
This is needed to run JConsole locally (which would be the end goal of
this project). Having it as part of our VM interface has general
usefulness as VMs will need this for OpenJDK too.
</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=34583"/></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong><a 
href="http://icedtea.classpath.org/wiki/BrandWeg";>BrandWeg</a></strong>
<p>
BrandWeg is our attempt to integrate parts of OpenJDK into Classpath
to provide some of the missing functionality to VMs using the
Classpath interface. This is actually capable of spawning a number of
sub-projects depending on student interest:
</p>
<ul>
<li>Using OpenJDK's java.util.Scanner</li>
<li>Using OpenJDK's Swing HTML implementation</li>
<li>Using OpenJDK's native ZIP implementation</li>
<li>Using JAXWS from OpenJDK</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Support <a href="http://jboss.org";>JBoss</a></li>
<p>JBoss should run well on GNU Classpath.  There are a number of open
bugs for this:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=27710"/></lI>
<li><a href="http://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=28552"/></li>
<li><a href="http://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=35479"/></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Support <a href="http://tomcat.apache.org";>TomCat</a></lI>
<p>Likewise, TomCat should run.</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=35482"/></li>
<li><a href="http://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=35487"/></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Support <a
href="http://xmlgraphics.apache.org/batik";>Batik</a></strong>
<p>See <a 
href="http://mail-archives.apache.org/mod_mbox/xmlgraphics-batik-dev/200803.mbox/address@hidden"/>
Classpath should be able to run Batik.
</p>
</li>
<li><strong><a href="http://library.gnome.org/devel/glib";>Glib</a> as
the native layer</a></strong>
<p>
We could simplify the portability glue code by using glib underneath.
We're using glib implicitly in the GTK peers already, and it would let
us delegate the responsibility for portability wrappers out of
classpath, while at the same time making the native code work
transparently on win32.
</p>
</li>
<li><strong>Rewrite <a href="http://trolltech.com/products/qt";>Qt</a>
peers using <a href="http://trolltech.com/products/qt/jambi";>Jambi</a></strong>
<p>
Our Qt peers are rotting away, and that means it's time for someone to
come in and rewrite them. Qt Jambi are the official bindings for Qt
for Java code, so it could be both fun and useful to rewrite our Qt
based AWT peers in pure Java.
</p>
</li>
<li><strong>Implement java.util.Scanner</strong>
<p>A skeleton implementation is available from Tom Tromey.  This has
been a long-suffering hole in GNU Classpath.</li>

-- 
Andrew :-)

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