Oracle Is Deprecating The Java Web-Browser Plugin With Java 9

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Oracle Is Deprecating The Java Web-Browser Plugin With Java 9

For anyone still relying upon Java web-plugins in their browser, they are going to be deprecated with the upcoming Java 9...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Java-9-Deprecating-Plugins

[jacob]

About time, too. Next step should be deprecating the whole Java.

[F1esDgSdUTYpm0iy]

Next step should be deprecating the whole Java.

Standalone it still has its uses and its place. The crossplatform nature of standalone applications developed in Java does make it viable still. Regarding deprecating the web-browser plugin -- That was to be expected; I'm kind of surprised it took this long. Haven't run across a website that I'd use regularly that actually requires Java. And haven't done so... in years.

[Vax456]

Can't wait to share this with my co-workers tomorrow. It's going to be fun trying to figure out how to update all of these legacy applications we have to support that rely on Applets.

I'm glad Oracle is killing off the web plugins (with fire), but I'm simultaneously dreading it.

[Vax456]

About time, too. Next step should be deprecating the whole Java.

Okay, I'll bite. Why?

[DeepDayze]

Maybe instead of a web plugin there should be a way to launch the Java web applet in a separate, sandboxed window rather than be contained within the browser.

[Delgarde]

Maybe instead of a web plugin there should be a way to launch the Java web applet in a separate, sandboxed window rather than be contained within the browser.

There is such a way - JNLP, aka WebStart. But it's not much use for existing applets, because applets often require integration with the browser - they can run Javascript in the containing window, and the containing window can invoke code within the applet, etc. Horrible stuff, but it's the kind of thing that's common in enterprise apps... mostly dating from the early 2000s, when "Web-based" had become a big selling point for such apps, but before it was practical to build them with standard Web technologies.

We've been having a lot of discussion of this subject at work lately, because despite having replaced a lot of them over the years (with HTML/JS), we still have hundreds of the wretched things to work with.

[GreatEmerald]

That's cool. Maybe finally Java applets will be eliminated.

Yes, I'm looking at you, US Geological Survey. *shakes head*

[nils_]

The only thing I use this for (and it's already extremely broken) is for the IP KVM feature on Server Boards. I wish they'd switch to an open standard for those since they tend to be broken and insecure in other places too.

[bug77]

First, this is March 2017 we're talking about (Oracle will probably push that back a couple of times).
Second, as noted it's browsers that are ending NPAPI plugin support, so applets would have stopped working anyway. Oracle could have migrated the plugin to the new API (questionable if such a move was really needed, but technically possible).
Third, there's no new garbage collector. It's the trusty old G1GC that has been with us since Java 5 or 6 that is being made the default.