Java installation guide is a bit unclear in 2022

Hello, I just spent hours to install Java on my Windows 11 and solved to install LanguageTool at LibreOffice. This topic is to save time for others and point out unclear descriptions I met and stuck there minutes. I’m not going to improve them myself since I don’t know much about Java so I’m unable to guarantee a correct one.

1 Java is from oracle.com especially this page but it requires signing-in somehow unnecessary. oracle.com gave an open source project OpenJDK and it gave Java Runtime Environment(JRE) and Java Development Kit(JDK). LibreOffice wants JRE not JDK on Windows 11 but on other operating systems it may depends. JRE belongs to JDK but since Java 11 (Java 17 is around the newest version) oracle.com does not provide JRE but some OpenJDK based projects keep providing JRE. You need to download an old version JRE from oracle.com after signing-in or download a JRE from another project. Or you download JDK if needed.

2 A JRE or JDK is a folder, which includes ./bin or something like that, ~100MB. No need to installation. In LibreOffice you press Alt+F12/LibreOffice/Advanced to add this folder. Although it claims JRE in the window and some pop-up window, you can add a JDK too, but JDK does not work on Windows 11, no warning, which is unclear. JRE does not exist as a project today if we say it strictly(?).

3 In LibreOffice Toolbar/Help/About LibreOffice/Version Information to check it is x86 or x64. x86=x32. Choose x86 Java for x86 or choose x64 Java for x64. oracle.com does not provide full choices.

4 The website does not mention the Java requirement when downloading

5 The topic Google shows at top for ‘Could not create Java Implementation Loader’ is not clear and locked

6 The documentation suggests to download Java from java.com, which is a sub-site of oracle.com, and it usually crashes saying 'This site https://www.java.com/ is experiencing technical difficulty. We are aware of the issue and are working as quick as possible to correct the issue. ’ So it is not very useful

7 Another documentation puts the icon of Java from oracle.com and does not mention other OpenJava based projects, although on Windows 10(the title of page), sometimes you must download from them.

Java Downloads for All Operating Systems

It does.

For certain features of the software - but not most - Java is required. Java is notably required for Base.

It is stated under all three major sections: Windows, macOS, Linux. This FAQ clarifies further.

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I was blind!

JRE binary builds are readily available from reputable projects; Oracle is not the preferred purveyor of either JDK or JREs.

AZUL

Microsoft OpenJDK

Adoptium “Eclipse Termium”

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Eclipse Termium JRE 17 x32 works on my windows 11 LibreOffice!