This is one of those areas for a non-expert like me when I'm confused by the existence of opinions at the extremes. I've just done a little Google searching and find the following:
Most browsers now no longer need or support JAVA. Unfortunately, Internet Explorer still does. Firefox is apparently phasing out Java. Google Chrome doesn't support it, nor does MS Edge. Many online commentators say that if you do need Java for a specific purpose, it should be fine so long as you keep it updated. However, I find Java's update page completely inaccessible. I wish I could remember why I reinstalled Java after years of not needing it. I vaguely recall the absence of Java often made 'submit" buttons impossible for JAWS to locate. Lately, I've been having that problem with several websites even with Java installed. Fortunately, JAWS is able to find these buttons when I switch to Chrome. So, although I haven't made a final decision, I'm leaning toward uninstalling Java from my system. If anyone wants to track the webpages I looked at, here's a link to the google results page that led me to most of them: https://www.google.com/search?site=&source=hp&q=is+orcale%27s+java+safe+as+of+2017%3F&oq=is+orcale%27s+java+safe+as+of+2017%3F&gs_l=hp.3...6571.13768.0.16174.33.31.0.0.0.0.287.3108.12j9j4.25.0....0...1c.1.64.hp..8.22.2640...0j0i131k1j0i3k1j0i13i30k1j0i8i13i30k1j0i22i30k1j33i21k1j33i160k1.qvCuOBvNod8#spf=1 -----Original Message----- From: JAWS-Users-List [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of John M. Sent: Saturday, April 15, 2017 9:43 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [JAWS-Users] java and jaws It is highly unlikely that you need Java installed on your computer. You are confusing Java with JavaScript. The later is a scripting language that is a part of the web browser and enables web developers to do all sorts of zany things and drive us screen reader users crazy. On the other hand, Java is a full blown programming language for developing applications. Most home users do not need Java installed. I removed it from my computers in 2010 and have never had the need to reinstall it. I never install it on any of my clients computers and have never received a call from anyone asking to install Java to resolve a problem with an application that they wanted to run. Java is a security nightmare and unless you absolutely need it, do not install it. If you already have it installed, remove it. If you find that you need it at some point in the future, it can be easily reinstalled. Best, John ----- Original Message ----- From: "Judy" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, April 14, 2017 6:06 PM Subject: [JAWS-Users] java and jaws > Hi, everyone, I enjoyed reading the info about Java. I always thought it > was > necessary to keep it up because of how they are doing websites these days, > but now Hans says that it isn't and I am confused. Could someone please > update me on Java, what it now does and what is necessary? When I wrote > that > post about a certain site jumping around I was wondering if it had > anything > to do with Java not being updated, but maybe that's not the case anymore. > Thanks in advance. Judy & Libby > > > > > > > > For answers to frequently asked questions about this list visit: > http://www.jaws-users.com/help/ For answers to frequently asked questions about this list visit: http://www.jaws-users.com/help/ For answers to frequently asked questions about this list visit: http://www.jaws-users.com/help/
