There have been great changes to Java in the last few years. Java 11 is the current “long term support” version and ALMA now uses this when building its Java-based software tools. Unfortunately, Java 11 doesn't include the previously standard installation method (Web Start) and so this is no longer available. A new installer based on InstallAnywhere has been developed that should continue to offer a more user-friendly and automatic installation to that offered by the “tarball” approach.
As the new installer contains a Java distribution, it is no longer be necessary to have Java 11 installed on your machine. However, a tarball download without Java will also be made available and, if so, the situation is unchanged from before i.e. a fully functioning Java Runtime Environment (JRE) must be installed and only Java 11 will work correctly.
If a version of Java has been installed by the user, its version number can be checked by typing java -version on the command line, the output of which should look something like this:
java version "1.8.0_271" Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_271-b09) Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM (build 25.271-b09, mixed mode)The number that follows the underscore refers to the update of the Java version that has been installed. When reporting a problem with the OT, the full version number including the update should be reported.
It may be possible to work with two different user-installed versions of Java (i.e. 8 and 11) and switching between these.
The ALMA OT Team, 2024 May 21