Documentation Redistribution Policy

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You may, without requesting permission, link to any location on our java.sun.com website. For example, live links into our platform API documentation will provide your developers with a guarantee of current documentation directly from Sun Microsystems.

Public Redistribution - Redistribution of the documentation and software in a given download bundle is covered by the click-through license for that download. You can read any license by starting the download process for that bundle -- the license appears just prior to actually downloading the bundle. Downloads are at http://java.sun.com/download. (The license is also included in the download bundle.) The following descriptions are summaries of the licenses and are not meant to replace or supercede wording in the licenses.

• Documentation - The Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition, API Specification is not redistributable except internally as described below. One exception is granted, where permission is given to publish 10 or fewer unaltered screen shots of our documentation, whose intended purpose is to show examples of our work. Unaltered screen shots include web pages at java.sun.com, our Java applets, our demo applets and applications, and listings of their source code.

• Software - Beginning with version 1.4.1, the Java 2 SDK and JRE software can be redistributed provided it is bundled with a value-added software program or published with a book or magazine, subject to the terms and conditions of the license. Such redistribution rights of the software applying specifically to publishers are addressed in a specific paragraph labeled "Distribution by Publishers" of the software license for the J2SE platforms. These redistribution terms do not apply to early access versions (such as JRE v1.4.1 Beta), or to any versions prior to 1.4.1, which cannot be redistributed. The same rules apply to those in academic institutions. Some information is available at the Legal and Licensing FAQ.

• API specifications can be redistributed internally without special permission. They cannot be made available on the Internet.

• Documents governed only by a legal notice and not by a software license, including tutorials, require special permission. These can be identified as documents outside of a software release.

• Documents governed by a software license have their distribution policy written into that software license. Internal distribution may require special permission.

Attribution - Where permission has been granted (or where special permission need not be requested) please use the following attribution language:

  Copyright 1993-2002 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Reprinted with permission.

Proper attribution includes attribution of Sun copyright, trademarks and other intellectual property that appear in the documentation. See the Sun Microsystems, Inc. Legal Terms and the Sun Trademark and Logo Usage Requirements for further information about Sun's intellectual property rights.

If the copyright policies described on this page do not answer all your questions, please direct further inquiries to copyrights@sun.com. They will respond to your question and make sure that your request gets to the correct manager.

Redistribution of Popular Formats - Limited permission has been granted to a few individuals to redistribute documentation in formats we wouldn't otherwise support, such as WinHelp and HTMLHelp (permission given to Franck Allimant) and Macintosh 31-character-filename format (permission given to Stephen Revilak). These requests are handled on a case-by-case basis. Send mail to Documentation Team for more information.

Technology Licensees - Java technology licensees have some limited rights concerning document redistribution. If your company is a Java technology licensee, refer to your contract or licensee representative for more information.

Translations - English and Japanese translations of the Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition documentation are available. For information on translations of the Java Series books, see the International Sales section of the Addison-Wesley Java Series Web Site. Contact information is listed for each distributor, who can give you more information on how to obtain English-language or translated Addison-Wesley titles.