[lug] adding java to mozilla on linux

[Paul E Condon]

On Wed, May 25, 2005 at 06:17:21PM -0600, D. Stimits wrote:
> Someone pointed out a nice web site to estimate actual bandwidth of 
> connections, I thought I'd test out whether my ISP delivers close to 
> what they claim. Unfortunately, it uses a java plugin, with MIME type:
>   applicaton/x-java-vm
> 
> Now mozilla has under "navigator" in its setup options "helper 
> applications", where you can add helper applications for new MIME types. 
> I also have full java 1.5 versions available on the system (I use with 
> tomcat 5), including both jre and development apps. No matter what I've 
> done, I cannot get application/x-java-vm set up to handle this speed 
> test site:
>   http://www.dslreports.com/stest
> 
> Part of it I think is because I have no way to know what file suffix to 
> apply to this, and among the bin/* programs of both the main java 
> install and the jre install, I'm not certain which to choose...this 
> point I think is probably moot because every time I go to test this page 
> it claims I don't have a plugin, rather than claiming the plugin has an 
> error. It's a bit annoying that I must associate a file name extension 
> to a MIME type, but apparently that's what I must do.
> 
> Does anyone have any suggestings on getting mozilla to work with 
> application/x-java-vm using my Fedora Core's installed java? Does anyone 
> know if doing so is a security risk?
> 
> D. Stimits, stimits AT comcast DOT net

For Debian users who might like to install java, this thread lead me to try.
Under Debian the steps are:
1. install the packages fakeroot and java-package.
(java-package contains a script make-jpkg, which makes a Debian package of the
stuff that is downloaded from the sun web site)
2. download the java from the sun web site, not the rpm. (might be done 1st)
3. run fakeroot make-jpkg <filepath of java download from sun on the net>
3a. answer various license questions.
4. dpkg -i <the package name that you are told to use by message from above step>
5. make sure the use of java is enabled in your browser (javascript is other. enable
java, also.)

My hangup was on step 5. When I fixed that, suddenly everything started working.

HTH
-- 
Paul E Condon           
pecondon at mesanetworks.net