Step 1 Download the latest stable version of the java 2 platform for linux (rpm format) from java.sun.com.
Step 2 Change the permissions so the downloaded bin file is executable, and run it. This will produce the rpm script. Become root. Run the rpm script with
rpm -i [scriptname]
Locate the plugin file written by the script, as in
/usr/java/jdk1.5.0/jre/plugin/i386/ns7/libjavaplugin_oji.so
Step 3 Make Netscape/Mozilla recognize the plugin path. This generally means leaving the plugin file libjavaplugin_oji.so where it is in the /usr/java tree and making a symbolic link to it from your browser plugin directory ~/.netscape/plugins or ~/.mozilla/plugins as in
ln -s /usr/java/jdk1.5.0/jre/plugin/i386/ns7/libjavaplugin_oji.so ~/.mozilla/plugins
If you have root privileges and want to install the plugin for all users on the system at once, place the above symbolic link in the netscape or mozilla install directory, usually /usr/local/netscape/plugins or /usr/local/mozilla/plugins.
Step 4 Restart Netscape.
Download the java 2 platform from java.sun.com and run the wizard. This should discover any standard browsers you have installed (Netscape, Mozilla or IE) and automatically install the plugins for you. You will have to restart the browser after the installation to enable the plugin.
This page created and maintained by Brent C. Evans.