/usr/bin/jar and Provides:

[Jon Dowland <jon@alcopop.org>]

Hello java maintainers,

I have started packaging a Java program[1] and so I have
been taking a fresh look at the state of Java in Debian (it
has been 3 or so years since I last looked).

My package requires an implementation of /usr/bin/jar during
build-time.  This is an alternative on the Debian system,
with two packages providing it to my knowledge[2]: fastjar
and the sun JDK.

When I looked into my build-dependencies, I realised that
there was no virtual package for jar implementations:
packages which require a jar implementation at build-time
need either choose one implementation in preference to
others (e.g. fastjar) or manually maintain a list of
suitable packages (e.g. fastjar | sun-java5-jdk | ...)

I filed bugs/patches to implement a jar virtual package.
Fastjar has adopted this now[3], but Marcus Better objected
on the bug submitted to java-package[4].

I'm mailing the list to see what other Java maintainer's
think.

[1] <http://bugs.debian.org/395364>
[2] I originally mistook 'jar-sablevm' as being another 
    implementation, but is in fact just a wrapper around 
    fastjar.
[3] <http://bugs.debian.org/395397>
[4] <http://bugs.debian.org/395372>, CCed


-- 
Jon Dowland