More from the JEP 261 backlog

[Alex Buckley]

On 7/18/2024 5:16 AM, Stephan Herrmann wrote:
> JEP 261 lists among the new features a compiler option "--release", 
> which was contributed by JEP 247.
> 
> Now, JEP 261 is scope SE, but it "includes" JEP 247 which is declared as 
> scope JDK.

JEP 261 doesn't "include" JEP 247. JEP 261 merely refers to JEP 247 in 
the context of changes to JDK tools:

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Finally, changes due to revisions to JDK-specific APIs and tools include:

- The -Xbootclasspath and -Xbootclasspath/p options have been removed, 
as noted above. At compile time, the new --release option can be used to 
specify an alternate platform version (see JEP 247). At run time, the 
new --patch-module option, described above, can be used to inject 
content into system modules.
-----

There is no implication here that --release is part of the Java 
Platform, or mandatory for all Java compilers. Nor is there any 
implication that javac's implementation of --release (including ct.sym) 
can be relied on by code outside the JDK.

Alex