Java allows you to play online games, chat with people around the world, calculate your mortgage interest, and view images in 3D, just to name a few. It’s also integral to the intranet applications and other e-business solutions that are the foundation of corporate computing. Java is a platform that people write programs to run inside of. Because Java can be installed on Phones, Macs, PCs, and many other devices it can be very versatile and allow a programmer to get more visibility for their program. Java has been known to have memory leaks and run a bit bloated. It also has had security holes. So make sure you keep your Java updated to the most current version as often as possible. It does not hurt to remove older versions of Java before installing the most current version. You can also use the “JavaRa” tool to remove older versions after installing the most current version.
Download
Use the below download link to download Java from the manufacturers web page. You must remember to agree to the license agreement before clicking the download link by clicking the dot to the left of “Accept License Agreement“. In the JRE column look for exe and click on it. If you are using a 64-bit operating system then choose exe from that row. If you are unsure if your version of Windows is 64 bit then choose “System” or “System Properties” from the control panel. If you do not see anything that mentions “64-bit Operating System” or x64 then you have a 32 bit operating system and you are NOT 64 Bit.
(If you are not technical then read the above paragraph BEFORE you download)
To download click: here or http://jdk7.java.net/download.html To download SE: here or http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html
Remove Old Versions or CleanupJava continuously installs updated versions of its self but does not remove the old versions. There is a tool to remove old versions called JavaRa. It also will do in-line updating although we like to install from the above download link. If you want to totally remove Java we recommend cleaning with JavaRa then uninstall the current version. Then check the Program Files folders (both if a 64-bit OS) for Java folders and remove them. Then delete the SunJava folder from the “C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication Data” (WinXP) or from “C:ProgramData” (Vista/Win7). We also search the “C:Windows” folder for “java” to find anything left behind and delete it. You can find JavaRa here.
LinuxAdd repository for openjdk-7-jdk sudo apt-add-repository ppa:openjdk/ppa sudo apt-key adv –keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com –recv-keys [key id] sudo apt-get update
Remove previous version: http://singularlabs.com/software/javara/