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April 18, 2005 5:23 PM PDT
Java glitch hits OS X update
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Apple Computer acknowledged the problem late on Monday and posted a workaround to its Web site.
"After updating to Mac OS X 10.3.9, some systems may have issues with Java applications and Java-enabled websites when using Safari," the Mac maker said in a posting to its support Web site. "Safari may unexpectedly quit, and standalone Java applications may unexpectedly quit or not launch."
An Apple representative said the company plans to keep the update available. As of 5 p.m. Monday, it had not posted information alerting customers to the potential Java problem on the download page for the update. Apple released the OS update on Friday.
Among those hit by the bug were David Geller, CEO of Seattle-based e-mail marketing company WhatCounts, who said it affected both his 15-inch PowerBook and a dual-processor Power Mac G5.
"I found my entire Java development toolset stopped working right after applying 10.3.9," he said in an e-mail interview. Geller said he wondered how such "an egregious error" slipped through Apple's testing.
"I sure hope Tiger is better than this release," he said, referring to the next major update to Mac OS X, which is set to go on sale April 29. "I really want to love this stuff, but (Apple is) testing my patience, especially since I've moved all my developers to OS X."
For those who are affected, Apple said the problem can be fixed by reinstalling two earlier security patches: Java 1.4.2 Update 2 and Security Update 2005-002.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company also offered up a test that people can do to see if their systems are affected. Customers should open the terminal program and type "java -version" (without quotes) and then hit return, it said. Computers affected by the issue will get the message "Segmentation fault."
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terminal test described in this article without any problems. It
just returned my Java version as it should. So it apparently
doesn't affect all machines.
Ron-Bischofs-G4-PowerBook:~ rbischof$ java -version
java version "1.4.2_05"
Java(TM) 2 Runtime Environment, Standard Edition (build
1.4.2_05-141.4)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 1.4.2-38, mixed mode)
terminal test described in this article without any problems. It
just returned my Java version as it should. So it apparently
doesn't affect all machines.
Ron-Bischofs-G4-PowerBook:~ rbischof$ java -version
java version "1.4.2_05"
Java(TM) 2 Runtime Environment, Standard Edition (build
1.4.2_05-141.4)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 1.4.2-38, mixed mode)
along with 17 macs at my work all up and running with no
errors. I guess this is a very isolated issue
along with 17 macs at my work all up and running with no
errors. I guess this is a very isolated issue
Apple hasn't even bothered to proofread its own posted fix. The
final step in the fix points to the same URL as the previous step.
In other words, the "Security Update 2005-002" link points to
the Java 1.4.2 update. However, the old security update can be
found under the same directory if you poke around:
<<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/" target="_newWindow">http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/</a>
securityupdate2005002macosx1034orlater.html>
Hope this helps!
Apple hasn't even bothered to proofread its own posted fix. The
final step in the fix points to the same URL as the previous step.
In other words, the "Security Update 2005-002" link points to
the Java 1.4.2 update. However, the old security update can be
found under the same directory if you poke around:
<<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/" target="_newWindow">http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/</a>
securityupdate2005002macosx1034orlater.html>
Hope this helps!
innstalling the update to 10.3.9. Both my macs , iBook and G5 is
affected. Any ideas?
innstalling the update to 10.3.9. Both my macs , iBook and G5 is
affected. Any ideas?
Last minute Panther update=>minor glitch=>gotta get Tiger
Last minute Panther update=>minor glitch=>gotta get Tiger
Java can be nearly as fast as C++, and it does not have a bloated library, nor is it bogged down in a syntax swamp. C++ is not as fast as assembly can be, so why not write everything in assembly? They same reasons you would not do that are the same reasons why many things are better written in Java.
Unstable? What are you smoking?
There is no 'best language'. All have strengths and weaknesess. IMO, the biggest problem with Java is that you can't easily, nor reliably compile it into a single execcutable. If Sun would add native support for platform specific compilation, I think Java would start to take a decent chunk out of C++.
I like C++ as well, it is a very powerful language. But there is no getting around the fact that it is a jumbled mess and does stupid things like allowing one to overrun an array, even though it knows its size. The standard committee for C++ needs to stop adding to language and clean it up before it collapses into a black hole.
Java can be nearly as fast as C++, and it does not have a bloated library, nor is it bogged down in a syntax swamp. C++ is not as fast as assembly can be, so why not write everything in assembly? They same reasons you would not do that are the same reasons why many things are better written in Java.
Unstable? What are you smoking?
There is no 'best language'. All have strengths and weaknesess. IMO, the biggest problem with Java is that you can't easily, nor reliably compile it into a single execcutable. If Sun would add native support for platform specific compilation, I think Java would start to take a decent chunk out of C++.
I like C++ as well, it is a very powerful language. But there is no getting around the fact that it is a jumbled mess and does stupid things like allowing one to overrun an array, even though it knows its size. The standard committee for C++ needs to stop adding to language and clean it up before it collapses into a black hole.
updates or updating prebinding (a Unix thang) is all this is. This
isn't SP2. It isn't Windoze. It isn't a sloppy patch. If you've been
running software update regularly you likely won't notice
anything.
updates or updating prebinding (a Unix thang) is all this is. This
isn't SP2. It isn't Windoze. It isn't a sloppy patch. If you've been
running software update regularly you likely won't notice
anything.
Oh, or Mac users will blame SUN for that matter, huh? It is never Apple's fault, then :)
As was noted, this is not a patch error or security problem, it is a glitch, and easily fixed.
Oh, or Mac users will blame SUN for that matter, huh? It is never Apple's fault, then :)
As was noted, this is not a patch error or security problem, it is a glitch, and easily fixed.
There are a lot of languages out there. All have their strong and week points. I use Java because it is a fine application for building business apps and has a lot of support. C/C++ also has its advantages and disadvantages. I don't like it because you have to do much programming for simple applications. It also requires me to do much of the error checking that, IMO, the compiler should do.
There is also REALBasic, MONO, PHP, Perl, Delpi/Pascal, etc. Know I realize that not all of those are designed for application programming, but the idea is that you pick the language or languages that suite your needs. A good example would be Doom 3. I don't see them righting games like that in java. C++ on the other hand would be a fine language to write that kind of application in. And I assume there is probably other languages that would work as well.
So before you go bashing languages on any platform try and remember that not every language is well suited for every application.
There are a lot of languages out there. All have their strong and week points. I use Java because it is a fine application for building business apps and has a lot of support. C/C++ also has its advantages and disadvantages. I don't like it because you have to do much programming for simple applications. It also requires me to do much of the error checking that, IMO, the compiler should do.
There is also REALBasic, MONO, PHP, Perl, Delpi/Pascal, etc. Know I realize that not all of those are designed for application programming, but the idea is that you pick the language or languages that suite your needs. A good example would be Doom 3. I don't see them righting games like that in java. C++ on the other hand would be a fine language to write that kind of application in. And I assume there is probably other languages that would work as well.
So before you go bashing languages on any platform try and remember that not every language is well suited for every application.