Java applets don't display

[ArtisticVisions]

OK, I know java isn't the same as javascript, but there isn't a separate forum for java here... so maybe a moderator will move this to "general" or something... that's fine.

Anyway, as of last week sometime, java applets no longer display on or offline. I may have inadvertently deleted some files while doing some semi-routine maintainance, or maybe something else happened. Since no java applets display at all, I'm guessing that 1 or more files are either missing or corrupted.

Before you ask, YES, I have java enabled in the browser and security settings. I'm running Windows 98 and IE 6.0. Java was working just fine until about a week ago.

I downloaded the JRE from sun, hoping it would replace or overwrite any missing or bad files. It didn't work. I tracked down a copy of the microsoft JVM and installed that. Still no luck.

I have posted this question on several other forums without a solution yet. I emailed support at Sun and haven't got a reply yet. Microsoft of course wants money before they give support, and I haven't found an answer in their online help section.

One person said something about editing a registry document but did not explain how to do it. Some geeks think we are all programming experts and assume we all understand all the techie stuff.

Anyway, if anyone could offer me a solution or suggest something to try, I would really appreciate it. I don't want to have to re-install Windows just yet because I have a lot of stuff to backup and no money to buy zip discs to put everything on.

Thanks,

Thomas

[khalidali63]

My first guess is that you have installed or deleted something that has screwed up the classpath stuff.

If you have not done this already,then
clean up your system from any java VMs aor sdk installations,clean up all the classpath entries path entries for java. VM/SDK
Then re -instal the latest version of java VM/SDK.
from the dos prompt
C:\java

should give you the info about the VM/SDK and all the other info.

if you do not get this and get an error something like
"unkown command/batch or any other windows crapy error message then make sure that you have set the class paths (environment variables to point to the current java exe files.).

Hope this helps.

Cheers
Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

Thanks VERY much for responding Khalid.

Again, I'm not a computer whiz and don't understand all the tech stuff unless it is spelled out in lay terms. When you say clean up your system and clean up classpath entries, I don't know exactly what you mean. I don't want to go messing up anything worse than it already is or deleting the wrong things.

I'm an intelligent person, but to someone with your computer knowledge, I must seem like a dummy. If you have the time, could you please explain this process in more detail to a person who is not familiar with editing system files?

I think your suggestion is about the only thing I haven't tried yet, short of re-installing Windows. It sounds very much like what someone on another forum was trying to tell me, but since I really didn't understand how to do it, no further help or explanation was given. Your help, or anyone else who understands how to do this, would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Thomas

[khalidali63]

I can only try...:-)

Lets do it step by step.

1.Open a command window.
click on start
select run
type in "cmd" without qoutes if it doesnt work then type "command" without qoutes...
Once window is open type
java

and let me know of the results

Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

Obviously, if I just type java, nothing happens... so I assumed I was supposed to hit enter. This is what was displayed.

Microsoft(R) Windows 98
(C)Copyright Microsoft Corp 1981-1998.

C:\WINDOWS\Desktop>java
Usage: java [-options] class [args...]
(to execute a class)
or java -jar [-options] jarfile [args...]
(to execute a jar file)

where options include:
-client to select the "client" VM
-server to select the "server" VM
-hotspot is a synonym for the "client" VM [deprecated]
The default VM is client.

-cp -classpath <directories and zip/jar files separated by ;>
set search path for application classes and resources
-D<name>=<value>
set a system property
-verbose[:class|gc|jni]
enable verbose output
-version print product version and exit
-showversion print product version and continue
-? -help print this help message
-X print help on non-standard options
-ea[:<packagename>...|:<classname>]
-enableassertions[:<packagename>...|:<classname>]
enable assertions
-da[:<packagename>...|:<classname>]
-disableassertions[:<packagename>...|:<classname>]
disable assertions
-esa | -enablesystemassertions
enable system assertions
-dsa | -disablesystemassertions
disable system assertions

C:\WINDOWS\Desktop>


I don't know what it means, but I appreciate you walking me through this.

[khalidali63]

This mean that you do have a JVM installed on your machine..
now do you have another browser then IE (NS may be) to see if the applets are not working only in IE?

Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

I do not have Netscape. The only other browser is my ISP, which is WMconnect, which is the same as AOL and applets do not display there either, nor do they work in programs.

[khalidali63]

Ok ..you said you have IE 6?

go to this link and see if it congratulates you for having the updated java pluggin.

http://java.sun.com/getjava/download1.html

Let me know what do you get..

Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

Yes it does. I have been there many times. You are fast. I will try to keep up. :D

[khalidali63]

It did show you the congratulations message?

[ArtisticVisions]

Yes. And after going there the java coffeecup icon shows up in the system tray by the clock.

[khalidali63]

Ok now here is the conclusion..:-)

That message which you see there(congratulations) is an applet,and if you can see that in your browser that means you have updated javaplugin,now to the starting question why you could not see the applets a remote possibility is incompatibility of those applets with this version of JVM or there is some other problem with the applets.Your browser and JavaVM are fine..

Post the link of an applet which you can not see..

Cheers

Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

I was afraid of that. I have a feeling that with all the troubles between Sun & Microsoft that Sun may be purposely making it so that applets that run fine with the microsoft VM are not compatible with their new version.

Basicly everything on this site http://www.javapowered.com/werks.html and just about every other java applet on the web and all of my java programs do not work.

Perhaps I should uninstall this again and find the old microsoft version again? I did this before too, but I may have had both of them at the same time.

[khalidali63]

Yep uninstalling and re installing is a good idea.since you are using win 98 then I'd suggest that once you uninstall reboot the sys and then restart and install again.

BTW I just went to the link and it works prety good with both NS6+ and IE 6 on my win 2000 Pro.

Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

I will try this, but remember, the problem initially occurred BEFORE I installed the new JRE2 from Sun, so maybe the problem is still something else. Could it be the classpath thing we were talking about earlier?

Thanks so much for taking the time to at least TRY to help me.

Thomas

[khalidali63]

that could be so.but if it were then you should not have been able to see the congratualtory java applet on the java website.
See my logic is this.If one type of java applet is viewable( java website) then all other should be,and if they are not then the only thing I can think of is the compatibility of those Java applets,but this should not have worked on my browsers as well( and do work).
My guess is re installing it as I mentioned earlier should take care of it..

Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

OK. It will take about a half hour or more to do this, then I'll be back to let you know if it worked. I have uninstalled and re-installed several times, but I was rebooting AFTER the install instead of after the uninstall.

Thanks.

Thomas

[khalidali63]

great ..lets see.

Khalid

[ArtisticVisions]

:mad: :confused:

Didn't work. Again I see the congratulations applet, but no others.

Any other ideas?

:rolleyes:

[khalidali63]

hunmm..
let me get back to you...

[khalidali63]

Actually lets go on email..

k_ali@shaw.ca