Apple says no Java for you, removes plugin from browsers on OS X 10.7 and up

If you care about good journalism, follow the source. This is Engadget aggregating an Ars Technica story. That's fine -- there are good reasons for aggregation -- but if you are going to share on social networks, take the time to click to the original and reward the <i>real</i> reporting -- in this case from Dan Goodin.<p><a href="http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/10/apple-removes-java-from-all-os-x-web-browsers/" rel="nofollow">http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/10/apple-removes-java-from...</a>

They are uninstalling the Apple-provided Java browsing plugin and letting Oracle handle the browser plugin from now on. Sounds good: why keep Java around by default as a potential security hole now that very few sites use it?<p>They still provide Java for applications like CrashPlan, Minecraft, or JungleDisk which need it.

I switched from FreeBSD as my desktop to OSX about four years ago because:<p>a) I needed a unix based desktop<p>b) I needed end user components (browser, printing, etc.) that just worked<p>Circa 2008, everything in Safari "just worked" - every site, every player, every piece of embedded bullshit on every little web 2.0 site blah blah blah.<p>But now I need to manually futz around with flash every two weeks to keep it working ... and now java as well ?<p>I think OSX still has an edge for me, in terms of getting things done, due to printing and ... ? It's getting awfully close to even, though.

...if only Java in the browser wouldn't have failed so bad (and it did long time ago, Apple's decision is just a sad reminder of this), we would actually have the "nirvana" of using Python (Jython), Ruby (JRuby), Clojure and more IN THE BROWSER! Same language on the server and in the browser, even on mobile, and the ability for every developer/team to CHOOSE that language from a few option that run on the JVM... (I know we'll have this one day, with languages that compile to Javascript, but... it could have so much more beautiful, another lost "alternate reality", like the ones in which Lisp went mainstream and even OSs were build in it... sigh...)<p>How dump could Sun and Oracle (I know, the browser Java fight was maybe already lost when Oracle came in...) be not to realize the potential ecosystem that could grow around this? Sigh...

I don't expect to see much difference in my day-to-day browsing, I can barely remember the last time I encountered a Java applet - most of the time I see them they are some sort of unimportant and old technology demo.<p>However, I'm of the understanding that in Europe, a lot of bank websites use Java applets as their primary way to do online banking, in which case I can see this decision affecting a lot of people.

I wasn't too worried about this when i read it, but it appears the latest oracle java plugin is not supported on chrome. I get this message from the download page:<p>"Chrome does not support Java 7. Java 7 runs only on 64-bit browsers and Chrome is a 32-bit browser.<p>If you download Java 7, you will not be able to run Java content in Chrome and will need to use a 64-bit browser (such as Safari or Firefox) to run Java content within a browser. Additionally, installing Java 7 will disable the ability to use Apple Java 6 on your system."<p>So now it looks like I'll have to flip over to firefox if I want to use a site that requires the java plugin - kind of a nuisance.

Sensational; Apple planned on passing off Java to Oracle for a while. Oracle now distributes a Java 7 JRE for OS X directly.

The built-in Java was optimized for Retina display and all texts were crisp and sharp. After the update and a manual installation of Oracle's Java Runtime, everything is blurry again.

Completely stupid headline; removing words 2 through 6 (and the comma) would fix it.

I love Apple and their little "surprise, all your users will have to do something to get your app to work today, hope you help desk is staffed!"<p>And Oracle is no better, making changes as "security updates" that have no pre-release, which is fine in theory but in practice has tended to break our app.

Some online photo printing service sites use funky Java Applets to let you upload image files by picking from thumbnails generated on the client side.<p>Other than that I can only see this move as a plus for internet security.

I can't remember the last time I used Java on the client side but I'm sure it was hellish.

At the risk of sounding a bit ridiculous, good for them. The less Java, the better.

Unlike the previously built-in Java, Oracle's Java plugin doesn't seem to work with Chrome on the Mac due to Chrome being 32 bit. Anyone know a workaround?

Doesn't change much, since the earlier change to the OS meant you don't even <i>have</i> Java by default.

I keep Java disabled in Chrome anyway, so no complaints here.

Pretty soon, this URL won't be a 404 - <a href="http://www.apple.com/hotnews/thoughts-on-java/" rel="nofollow">http://www.apple.com/hotnews/thoughts-on-java/</a>

How to enable Java browser plugin again: <a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4672511" rel="nofollow">http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4672511</a>.

Consider the sun sanked in the west, they should remove java long time ago.

Java is dead in the browser dear Google/Mozilla please remove it from chrome and firefox also forbid it