With good regularity, Sun introduces their latest technology in the form of their Java Virtual Machine or JVM (aka JRE, or JDK; at their core, the acronyms are essentially synonymous). Functionality provided over the past years includes the following: mouse wheel support, "always on top" windows, full screen mode, internationalization, logging, security, and enhanced data structures. The latest version is JDK 1.5.0.8.
This is all great unless you're stuck with the Microsoft JVM. Some machines from a few years back were shipped with the MS-JVM. The problem is that it is based on JDK 1.1, which is over 8 years old at this point. It's easy enough for an individual to go to Sun's website and upgrade. But it is not necessarily easy for IT Managers at large corporations.
So that means if you provide Java applets for one of these large corporations, you have to make sure your applet will run on the MS-JVM, aka JDK 1.1, aka 1998 technology. This means no Swing, no Collections, no java.util.Logging, etc.
To make matters worse, Microsoft stopped shipping Java at all with new PCs, and they don't make their old JVM available. Luckily, some old versions of the install program are still kicking around. If you search on the filename msjavx86.exe, you'll find some results. I found my copy at filemirrors.com.
Once you install the JVM, it is still a bit tricky to get it to work. You need to navigate to Tools -> Internet Options -> Advanced and scroll down to the section on Java. Be sure to uncheck the option to use the Sun JVM and be sure to check the options for the console and logging for the MS JVM. Once you've restarted IE, your Java Console will now be available at View -> Java Console instead of Tools -> Sun Java Console. You'll know you've successfully installed the JVM if you console shows up and shows something like the following:
Microsoft (R) VM for Java, 5.0 Release 5.0.0.3805
Welcome to 1998!
-Alex
Comments