A US judge last week dismissed a Microsoft motion in its legal
battle with Sun over Java, writes Matthew Thomas.
Microsoft had hoped for a quick ruling that it did not breach
Sun's restrictions on Java in its dispute with the firm over
Microsoft's use of Java.
The news brings the possibility of a courtroom battle over the
use of the cross-platform technology. The judge also dismissed a
motion from Sun seeking a ruling that Microsoft is in violation of
its licensing agreement.
Sun had filed a lawsuit against Microsoft claiming that it had
breached the licensing contract for Java and had made changes to
Java in order to tailor it more closely for its Windows platform.
Sun says that this makes Microsoft's Java incompatible with other
Java software.
A courtroom battle could be long and uncertain because of the
complexity of the case.
