Code review request for 4881419 The type of X[].clone() should be X[]

[Jeroen Frijters]

David Holmes wrote: 
> The fact that Object.clone() is implemented via a native call into the
> VM is simply an implementation detail.

That's not what we're talking about. We're talking about the fact that arrays (appear to) have a *public* clone method. The argument is about the return type[1] of this method: according to the JLS it is X[], but according to the VMSpec it is Object. This difference is fine, but I'm arguing that the JLS fiction should be in the JLS, not in the Object.clone() documentation.

Regards,
Jeroen

[1] Not the runtime class of the object returned.