Name: gm110360 Date: 11/15/2001


java version "1.3.1_01"
Java(TM) 2 Runtime Environment, Standard Edition (build 1.3.1_01)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 1.3.1_01, mixed mode)


The JRE 1.3.1_01 instructions include a completely inadequate description
of how to install the Java Plug-in on a Solaris platform. Specifically,
the descriptions of how to set the NPX_PLUGIN_PATH environment variable,
and where to install the javaplugin.so file, do not create a robust
installation.

The JRE 1.3.1_01 instructions say to set the NPX_PLUGIN_PATH environment
variable to recognize the plugin. What the instructions don't tell you
is that you really want to set this with multiple path components, to
access both the JRE plug-in and all the other plug-ins associated with
the browser. And even then, it is still necessary to copy the
$JAVAHOME/jre/plugin/sparc/ns4/javaplugin.so file into the
$MOZILLA_HOME/plugins/ directory as well, in order to get the plugin
recognized [enabled] (at least, by Netscape 4.78, and under circumstances
where the user may occasionally disable and re-enable Java in the user
preferences).

Finally, trouble may ensue when the plug-in gets disabled. (This has
occasionally happened to us for reasons we don't understand, but which
may have something to do with previous versions of the setup show below,
the faults in which which are now corrected). Or the user may change the
browser preferences and disable Java for some temporary period.) If this
happens and all you have are the existing JRE instructions, there may
simply be no way to get the browser to once again recognize the plug-in.

If the plug-in does get disabled (i.e., the Help->About Plug-ins page
in the browser shows the plug-in is disabled), you may have to take the
following steps to re-enable it:

    {edit the user preferences, and Enable Java}
    {exit the browser}
    cd ~/.netscape
    rm plugin-list* registry

and then start and stop the browser twice. The key here is the undocumented
step of removing the extra files in the .netscape directory; these files
will be automatically regenerated by the browser. The JRE installation
instructions should be extended to document these steps.

With the advice above in mind, we have found the following script to provide
an adequate way to start the Netscape 4.78 browser under Solaris. Adjust the
absolute pathnames as needed on your own system. A version of this script
should be included in the Solaris JRE instructions, so the entire community
doesn't have to repeat this analysis.

    #!/bin/csh -f

    setenv MOZILLA_HOME /data2/home/glenn2/3rdparty/netscape

    # This is the home for the JRE 1.3.1_01 release.
    setenv JAVAHOME /usr/j2se

    setenv NPX_PLUGIN_PATH $MOZILLA_HOME/plugins:$JAVAHOME/jre/plugin/sparc/ns4

    set path = ($JAVAHOME/bin $MOZILLA_HOME $path)
    setenv XKEYSYMDB $MOZILLA_HOME/XKeysymDB

    limit descriptors 128
    nice $MOZILLA_HOME/netscape -no-about-splash $argv

    # Make sure we're in the right place, before we go recursively deleting!
    cd ~/.netscape/cache
    if ($status == 0) then
        touch dummyfile
        rm -rf *
    endif
(Review ID: 135514)
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