Working Java 7 on Ubuntu Oneiric Ocelot 11.10 (update-alternatives)

I still have not figured out why the default openjdk installation on Ubuntu 11.10 seems broken. With broken I mean that there are no entries in the alternatives database and no command in the path (which follows from not being the default alternative).

As a consequence, I did the same old mumbo jumbo with update-alternatives. As the openjdk-7 is in /usr/lib/jvm/java-7-openjdk-i386/, I just run the following commands:

% sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/java java /usr/lib/jvm/java-7-openjdk-i386/bin/java 4 
% sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/javac javac /usr/lib/jvm/java-7-openjdk-i386/bin/javac 4     t
% sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/jar jar /usr/lib/jvm/java-7-openjdk-i386/bin/jar 4 

I guess I may want to do  the trick for more executable stuff. Moreover, I have no idea whether the browser plugin works or not. It has been ages since I actually used it and right at the moment I do not care. Hope this will be helpful.

After that, just call the appropriate update-alternatives --config ja(vac|va|r) stuff!

I almost forgot... I just installed the plain openjdk-7-jdk/jdr stuff from the official ubuntu repositories.

Besides... I have seen a package sun-java-{yadda-yadda}-bin which may have been the provider of the links in the first place (when I was using sun's JDK which was correctly packaged). Right at the moment I cannot see a similar package for OpenJDK. My Ubuntu went postal recently and consequently I cannot verify. :(

Ubuntu 10.10: so far, so good

On October 11th I decided to upgrade to the new ubuntu. I wanted to try the update procedure, as:

1. It's not a big issue to reinstall afterwards (right now Linux is not critical for my job)
2. I was really curious (and scared, from what I read on the web... but well, if OS X manages to just update, why Ubuntu should not?)

First I updated the system to the latest version as recomended. Then, I started the proper upgrade process. The installation process took *hours*. Not only because of the download process (here at the University we've got a pretty fast connection ;) ). It was just the setup/configure process. It took somethink like five or six bloody hours (I don't know, since I left the netbook on and went home). Besides, having question asked during the installation process (question blocking the process) means you have to be in front of the monitor for the whole process. So the day after I found some nice blocking panes asking me silly questions[0]. Then it also stopped responding to input. I inadvertently touched the shut down key and the system ignored my tentatives to press the cancel button. However, Ubuntu rebooted the half installed system fine (I think that it was just setting up unimportant applicative packages when I interrupted the procedure). dpkg --configure -a and now *everything* is fine. Perhaps I have been lucky, but I think they are doing a great job. I was expecting an epic failure (my fault, by the way). Usage impressions another day. Maybe. Or maybe not.