Tech Issue - Java Security Flaw

**Kelton** · January-15-13, 10:00 AM

Have any of you disabled Java on your computer? I heard about the problem on a radio broadcast and found this article.

http://www.zdnet.com/apple-oracle-mo...aw-7000009755/

I never downloaded the latest update - the irritating reminder is blinking every time my computer starts up. When I began to install it, it said I may have to disable cookies and I don't recall any other updates from them requiring I do that, so I was leery of doing it.

I'm not exactly computer savvy, so could some of you experts comment? Thanks!

**jiminnm** · January-15-13, 12:23 PM

I am not an expert, but I have uninstalled Java from my computer and disabled the Firefox plug-in [[on two computers, XP & W7). I have read that Mozilla [[Firefox) is developing its own plug-in to perform the same function.

Norton has occasionally notified me that something has tried to attack my computer, and very time it was through Java. I took it off a few weeks ago and have noticed no change in performance or full web site access.

**Cincinnati_Kid** · January-15-13, 06:11 PM

Some important computer programs require Java to run, so what is the solution to that?

**jcole** · January-15-13, 09:24 PM

Oracle put out the updated, patched Java today. Have at it
http://java.com/en/download/index.jsp

**gazhekwe** · January-15-13, 09:52 PM

Thanks, jcole!

**Kelton** · January-15-13, 09:57 PM

Thanks everyone!

So does this mean I should delete the entire program and install this or is this download just a patch for the original program? Clueless here!

**jcole** · January-16-13, 09:13 AM

Originally Posted by Kelton

Thanks everyone!

So does this mean I should delete the entire program and install this or is this download just a patch for the original program? Clueless here!

Just run the install routine; Java will update it.

**JBMcB** · January-17-13, 09:09 AM

Originally Posted by Cincinnati_Kid

Some important computer programs require Java to run, so what is the solution to that?

What do you run that needs Java? I run a few obscure developer tools, but I have it switched off in my browser.

If you download the latest Java, go to the Java control panel, go to the security tab, and uncheck "enable in browser" to switch it off.

**jcole** · January-17-13, 09:15 AM

Originally Posted by JBMcB

What do you run that needs Java? I run a few obscure developer tools, but I have it switched off in my browser.

If you download the latest Java, go to the Java control panel, go to the security tab, and uncheck "enable in browser" to switch it off.

There are ecommerce sites that use it as well as some game sites.

**Kelton** · January-17-13, 09:31 AM

Thanks again for the additional information.

Can you give me some examples of what sites use Java? For example, how about Amazon, Youtube and Ebay? I don't use any game sites, and keep my internet use to a minimum.

Maybe I should just delete the entire program from my computer. I'd hate to be without it if I was in a rush and found I needed it though!

To really expose my computer ignorance - do the uses of Adobe and Java overlap each other?

Kelton

**jcole** · January-17-13, 11:03 AM

Originally Posted by Kelton

Thanks again for the additional information.

Can you give me some examples of what sites use Java? For example, how about Amazon, Youtube and Ebay? I don't use any game sites, and keep my internet use to a minimum.

Maybe I should just delete the entire program from my computer. I'd hate to be without it if I was in a rush and found I needed it though!

To really expose my computer ignorance - do the uses of Adobe and Java overlap each other?

Kelton

By Adobe, I'll assume you mean Flash. [[Adobe makes numerous programs including Acrobat, Flash and Shockwave). Flash and Java don't necessarily overlap; it's usually one or the other depending on the developer.
As to which sites use Java, I really don't know. I just know that some banking sites and ecommerce sites do. I think Etsy is one.
If you don't want to use Java, just disable it and when you come across a site that needs it, re-enable it.

**jiminnm** · January-18-13, 03:07 PM

Originally Posted by Cincinnati_Kid

Some important computer programs require Java to run, so what is the solution to that?

I guess I don't have any important computer programs because I have noticed no impact without Java.

**jcole** · January-18-13, 06:44 PM

I've had a few sites ask me to allow java; mostly coupon printers or bank sites.

**Jimaz** · January-18-13, 10:37 PM

Sorry to get geeky but I'm not likely to have the opportunity to ask this here again. It is somewhat on topic.

Could someone please explain how running bytecode on a virtual machine [[such as Java does) is in any way preferable to running native code directly on CPU hardware?

It seems to me that writing a cross compiler that produces native code for various CPUs should be no more difficult than writing custom virtual machines for those CPUs and would provide the same portability as virtual machines. Yet native code on CPU hardware runs faster than bytecode on a virtual machine.

So how is Java supposed to compensate for sacrificing that runtime advantage?

Sincerely.

**Jimaz** · January-18-13, 11:34 PM

From Java virtual machine:

JVMs are most often implemented to run on an existing operating system, but can also be implemented to run directly on hardware.

Okay, so maybe Java was anticipating that future hardware would replace the virtual machine? Yet they're [[still since June 1991?) most often not run directly on hardware?

So why not just use faster native code?!

**jcole** · January-18-13, 11:45 PM

I always understood the advantages of Java were that a) it's portable and b) running it without running it directly on the hardware makes it less likely to crash the system.
I'm not a coder, so I'm by no means expert in this; I'm basing this on discussions we had in classes I took in college.

**Jimaz** · January-19-13, 12:30 AM

Originally Posted by jcole

I always understood the advantages of Java were that a) it's portable and b) running it without running it directly on the hardware makes it less likely to crash the system.
I'm not a coder, so I'm by no means expert in this; I'm basing this on discussions we had in classes I took in college.

Thank you so much for that jcole.

As stated above, the portability advantage [[as opposed to the cross compiler approach) is still suspect but your point b) comment makes sense in that additional software integrity checks could be inserted more easily than in hardware — after the horse has left the barn [[i.e. the silicon has been stamped).

Thanks for that.

Did I mention I hate Java? LOL! I still have to keep shutting off Java Quick Start because it slows everything else on the system!

**JBMcB** · January-19-13, 07:35 AM

Portability is a big plus for Java. It's much more widely used on the server side than on the desktop these days. It's nice to build a web service infrastructure that can run on anything - Windows, Linux, MacOS, AIX, etc...

On the desktop, Flash/Silverlight, then HTML5 have replaced the use of Java in the browser. Various cross-platform library suites, such as Qt and Gtk, along with languages such as Python and Ruby, have replaced it's use as a desktop application platform.

Stability really doesn't come into play anymore. Modern OSes have a good enough protected memory scheme to prevent user space software from bringing the whole machine down. Most crashes these days are either a bug in the OS itself, or in a driver.