help : Java Glossary

Help with Applets

• If you are using Internet Explorer 7+ you must allow blocked content permission for Active X to run. This also gives permission to Java to run.
• You need a very recent browser because this website depends on CSS 2 which is not even fully supported by the latest browsers.

  

• Each program is labelled with the version of Java it requires. However, I use only the latest Java myself, JDK 1.6.0_18. This is the only version I test with. It is the version with the best chance of working. The CurrCon currency displays requires Java version 1.1 or later. The JDisplay program listings requires Java version 1.2 or later. Just install the latest Java and be done with it! You can keep the old version too if you like, just make sure your browser is configured to us the latest one when you browse this website. You can find what version Java you are using with the Wassup Applet. Why so much Java? This website is primarily about Java. I wanted to show off what you can do with it.

  

• After you have installed the latest Java, you should make sure it is working:
  
• For help getting the console visible so you can see error messages:

  

• For help with individual browsers see:
  Firefox
  IE
  Mozilla
  Netscape
  Opera

Help with Signed Applets and Java Web Start Apps

• When you use a signed Applet or signed Java Web Start application, sometimes Windows hides the dialog box where you give permission for the program to run. Hit alt-Esc repeatedly to see if the grant/accept dialog box is buried under something else.
• Signed Applets need your permission to break out of the sandbox and behave like ordinary programs to do things like read and write disk or talk to arbitrary servers on the web, or set your clock. They will behave very strangely if you refuse that permission. Different browsers ask permission various strange ways, but usually you have to click a button marked :

  or .

Installing the Canadian Mindprod Certificate

If that does not work, you can download the certificate and install it manually per the instructions under keytool.

Help With Java Web Start

• Java Web Start won’t work until you set up an association between the *.jnlp files (MIME application/x-java-jnlp-file) and javaws.exe both in Windows and your browser. Both Sun and the browser makers have refused to do this automatically. Growl!
• For help getting the Java Web Start (JWS) working:

  

Brute Force JWS

The Windows Help Bug

It was a bold planned obsolescence move, though they protest the motive was security. I am doubtful. They could have changed the help viewer to disable any potentially dangerous feature.

So what do you do? You can ask the author to provide a Vista version, or you can convert the .hlp files yourself to either .chh, .html, .pdf etc. (19 different formats) using an inexpensive Ambersoft ABC program. Ambersoft has many variants on their utilities. Make sure you read the fine print before you select. Unfortunately, the new help won’t be integrated with the program to pop up in a context sensitive way. I could not get Microsoft’s recommended kludge to work.