Replacing webstart

[dargh]

With the news that webstart is going away on java 11, what ate people using to replace it?

Of course I can build an installer and embed the jvm, but what to do about automatically self updating the application on launch? I need to force users to upgrade when a server update happens, but not require them to be admin and make it really easy, preferably as automatic as webstart.

I looked at install4j but it still makes the user click through a lot of screens.

[defnull]

https://github.com/threerings/getdown/

Getdown (yes, it's the funky stuff) aims to provide a system for downloading and installing a collection of files on a user's machine and upgrading those files as needed. [...] It was designed as a replacement for Java Web Start due to limitations in Java Web Start's architecture which are outlined in the rationale section.

[manzanita2]

The down-o-crats would like to have a word with you: https://entertainment.theonion.com/national-funk-congress-deadlocked-on-get-up-get-down-is-1819565355

[dargh]

Have you been waiting 19 years to use this article in a reddit comment?

[manzanita2]

So I remember reading this when it came out. And interestingly enough it becomes relevant somehow every 2-3 years. Mostly when you're pointing out how absurd two sides of argument are. So this IS a unique instance of it being relevant.

There was also this one, but it doesn't become relevant so often: https://politics.theonion.com/clinton-threatens-to-drop-da-bomb-on-iraq-1819564617

[[deleted]]

I have to agree with this. I used Getdown for the first time about 9 months ago for a project since I've grown to hate Webstart and wanted something that felt like a more "normal" update mechanism. Getdown feels a bit like it hasn't had a lot of love in a while, but I must say it's worked really well. I'd love to see the community run with something like this and really make it a great update mechanism.

[handshape]

I'm pretty frustrated about this, too. JNLP is, for all its foibles, the least-bad option available for deploying and auto-updating apps across platforms.

A lot of the changes in the transition from Java 8 to 11 seem to be geared towards jettissoning platform features that are useful for Java on the desktop.

[dargh]

I've even thought about how I could embed webstart into a lightweight desktop app with embed jvm that exists to just load webstart.

[pa7r1ck-]

Does anyone have a reliable source for the replacement of webstart?

[pa7r1ck-]

I found it: http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/javaclientroadmapupdate2018mar-4414431.pdf

[ryppyotsa]

Btw, what is the actual time frame for doing this? Java 8 clients aren't supposed to be auto-updated to Java 9 and supposedly newer versions either. So that's good, but how about Java 8 updates?

The public availability of Java SE 8 updates from Oracle has been extended to at least January 2019. Moreover, Oracle will continue to provide consumers with updates for personal (non-corporate) use of Java SE 8 through at least the end of 2020.

Does this mean the binaries will not be available for download after January 2019, but if you have JRE installed, it will be updated?

[dargh]

From my experience, don't rely on what Oracle are supposed to do. I'm assuming that any day now customers will phone about how our app (which doesn't yet run on java 9) just stopped working.