When will the Java Language Specification, 4th edition be available?

Question

Now that the JDK 7 developer preview is out, one might think that it's time for a new JLS. After all, there have been changes to the language, albeit small ones.

I haven't found anything yet. When will a new JLS will be available, and from whence will one be able to get it?

Answer 1

You might be interested in both of these:

JSR 901: Java Language Specification
JSR 924: Java Virtual Machine Specification

Not surprisingly, both of them have recent draft reviews...

Answer 2

UPDATE Feb 18, 2012: As described at https://blogs.oracle.com/abuckley/en_US/entry/jls7_and_jvms7_online, the Java SE 7 Editions of the Java Language Specification and the JVM Specification are now available at http://docs.oracle.com/javase/specs/ in both PDF and HTML form.

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There are 3 locations from which you can download the Java Language Specification (JLS), 4th edition (more precisely, not "4th edition" but "Java SE 7 edition").

A relatively old draft is part of JSR 901 (http://jcp.org/en/jsr/detail?id=901). It is missing discussion of some of the new language features, such as those of JSR 334, Project Coin (http://www.jcp.org/en/jsr/detail?id=334).

JSR 336 (http://jcp.org/en/jsr/detail?id=336) contains an Annex 3 (http://download.oracle.com/otn-pub/jcp/java_se-7-final-spec/java_se-7-final-annex-3.zip) that has four different versions of the JLS: a full version with and without changebars, and a normative-only (1/3 shorter, lacking some examples and explanations) version with and without changebars. JSR 336's Annex 3 also has 2 versions of the JVMS (with and without changebars).

The best source is to get the JLS from the Java SE Specifications download page (http://download.oracle.com/javase/cmn/spec_index.html) (direct link to JLS PDF: http://download.oracle.com/javase/7/specs/jls/JLS-JavaSE7.pdf). This version is slightly updated, compared to the JSR 336 version. Only one variety is available: the full specification without changebars.

As of now (August 4, 2011), JLS 4th edition is not available in printed form, nor is it available from http://java.sun.com/docs/books/jls/ where the first three editions are available for download.

Answer 3

I can't answer your question about when the fourth edition will be available — actually, strictly speaking, that question is considered off-topic, though I don't have a problem with it — but I'm confident that you'll be able to get a copy at Oracle's JLS page.

That page currently offers nearly complete* electronic copies of the first three editions for free. It also links to the third edition's page on Amazon.com, so I'm also confident that you'll be able to buy paper copies at major booksellers, if you're into that sort of thing.

^{* The online version differs from the print version in minor ways, primarily the absence of quotations due to copyright issues.}