I want to install Java on my computer so that I can develop programs and I came across this page on Java in the Ubuntu community documentation. It says:
Java is a technology from Oracle (formerly: Sun Microsystems). There are several implementations, of which five will be discussed here:
- OpenJDK: The primary goal of the OpenJDK project is to produce an open-source implementation of the Java SE Platform (6 and 7). This is the default version of Java that Ubuntu uses and is the easiest to install.
- Oracle (Sun) Java 6: Oracle (Sun) Java 6 is the reference implementation for Java 6.
- Oracle Java 7: Oracle Java 7 is the reference implementation for Java 7.
- IBM Java: IBM Java is the preferred Java solution on PowerPC machines. It is a reimplementation with a Just-In-Time Compiler. It is only available from IBM's website.
- GNU Compiler: A Java compiler made by GNU. Only developers should have to install this.
I read the contents but still am a little confused. Are they all different versions of JDK? If not, then what?
And which one would you prefer?