DigiChat Java problem on Macintosh

[Jeff]

Mac users are having problems after installing Apple's latest Java version 1.4.1.


From: Robert Aldridge <webmaster@theimac.com>
Date: Sun May 4, 2003 11:39:17 AM US/Pacific
To: digichat-talk@digi-net.com
Subject: Mac users can't use DigiChat currently
Reply-To: digichat-talk@digi-net.com

To whom it may concern,
Apple updated to Java 1.4.1 about 6 weeks ago via the software update preference panel in Mac OS X. Following this update, Digichat no longer works.

Symptoms: Mac user using Java 1.4.1 logs into the chat room using a browser. They start typing in the chat. The chat scrolls down the screen from top to bottom of the window. When the chat reaches the bottom of the message window, in normal operation, the next message appears at the bottom of the window, and the other messages scroll up the screen. With Java 1.4.1 in Digichat, this normal scrolling function DOES NOT WORK. The chat scrolls off of the screen, and you are unable to scroll to see the chat.

This does NOT affect the Chatmaster stand alone applet -- just the regular chat applet downloaded by the regular user.

This, of course, is a pain, as most of our particular audience is Mac based. The first comment made to me by tech support was, "just uninstall Java 1.4.1, and reinstall the previous version of Java." Now, if it were just me, as the chatmaster, having this problem, I would do it, and stop complaining. Unfortunately, I CAN'T tell my users to unistall Java 1.4.1 and install the earlier version. The user would say... pfah! That's too much work... I'll just leave this site and not come back. And therein lies the problem.

I have been in touch with tech support a number of times, and have been told that there is no timeframe for this fix. So, until Digichat is fixed, it is NOT useful for any Mac user. This is a major problem, and should receive a major amount of attention from the Digichat programmers, but I get the impression that it is not. I realize that Digi does not have as many programmers at Apple or Sun or some other such company, but this IS a major issue. Digichat is unusable for any Mac user. I would think this would receive top priority.

Please let me know when this problem has been fixed, because I HATE leaving Digichat, but I am currently looking into alternatives. Thank you for your attention, and I am now stepping off of my soap box.

Sincerely,
Robert Aldridge
webmaster@macradio.com

~See you at the SCIWire-used-to-be-paralyzed Reunion http://www.stopstart.fsnet.co.uk/smilie/wavey.gif ~

[Wise Young]

Jeff, this is interesting. I did have some trouble when I initially installed Java 1.4.1 (as you know) with both the site and the chatroom. However, both appear to have resolved and it is a mystery why because I have not de-installed the Java 1.4.1 or done anything really to change my computer other than to do a directory rebuild and defragmentation of my disk in case the installation corrupted my disk. Wise.

[Steven Edwards]

"I have been in touch with tech support a number of times, and have been told that there is no timeframe for this fix. So, until Digichat is fixed, it is NOT useful for any Mac user. This is a major problem, and should receive a major amount of attention from the Digichat programmers, but I get the impression that it is not. I realize that Digi does not have as many programmers at Apple or Sun or some other such company, but this IS a major issue. Digichat is unusable for any Mac user. I would think this would receive top priority."

There is one possible problem I see with his conclusion: The error might very well be in the Mac Java implementation, and not the DigiChat client applet. In the above scenario, the lack of a timeframe would be because the DigiChat team doesn't have a timeframe for a Java update.

Of course, the DigiChat team could write some convoluted/obsfucated code to get around the problem, but... that would require them to first pinpoint the error in the Java implementation and then code the work-around for it.

-Steven

[Jeff]

Hmmmm...... that is interesting. Have you downloaded anything else new from Apple since the Java update?

How about you other Mac users out there? Which version of Java are you using?

~See you at the SCIWire-used-to-be-paralyzed Reunion http://www.stopstart.fsnet.co.uk/smilie/wavey.gif ~

[Wise Young]

For the last few days, I have been chatting on digichat even though I have Java 1.4.1 installed, running with OSX 10.2.5 and the latest versions of Internet Explorer, Netscape (as well as Mozilla and Camino), and Safari. Digichat uses a java applet. Apparently, there have been other problems with the digichat software and Java on Mac even before the 1.4.1 update appeared http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/printthread.php?threadid=5119

I will comment more on this later after doing some research on this.