This is about the Factory Pattern. I am a little confused.

I saw implementations where the createInstance() method is static and some implementations that are non-static.

Some say it's depending on "style" or "taste" and some say it does not. Wikipedia says that it should be non-static, and http://www.dofactory.com/Patterns/PatternFactory.aspx also says that it should be non-static, according to the Gang of Four.

My question is: does it depend on style & taste or does it violate the Factory Pattern if it's implemented the static way? What's right?

design-patterns factory factory-pattern factory-method static-factory
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