xTIMEcomposer,Java Runtime JRE and macOS

[aclassifier]

I just updated (from OS X El Capitan) to macOS High Sierra 10.13.

► Show Spoiler

UPDATE 29Oct2017: After some days (as may be seen by this "me almost alone thread" here) I have downgraded again.

I used my Time Machine backup and it was ready the morning after. Recipe here: https://support.apple.com/kb/PH25593?locale=en_US

Now xTIMEcomposer is back on solid ground again.

Until XMOS updates or gives a recipe I will not reinstall macOS 10.13 High Sierra. Maybe this is even dependent on Apple and/or Oracle?

Too bad, because High Sierra is nice.

I had been running xTIMEcomposer 14.3.2 on El Capitan. When I started it on High Sierra I got this (rather getting used to it now) message that

You must install an older version of Java SE 6 Runtime to open “xtimecomposer.app”

It then pointed me to https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1572?locale=en_US

The Java About box showed me this on High Sierra:

A critical Java security update is available.
8 Update 151 12 (74 MB)
Your current version is Java 8 Update 144. It is recommended that you update now to get the latest security fixes.

I think this means that JRE is 1.8.0_144 (maybe it came from El Capitan and that Apple had washed their hands completely on these Java matters).

I then downgraded by using the url above and xTIMEcomposer was happy; JRE didn't complain about xTIMEcomposer's usage I assume.

The About box showed the same text as above. I had gotten 1.8.0_144 even if I had had it and had got a complaint?

But then I upgraded Java as suggested. I now have Java 8 Update 151 ie. Java Runtime 1.8.0_151.

But xTIMEcomposer 14.3.2 now works, without complaint! (NO it doesn't, I had not discovered the problems below)

I am confused. Maybe the list above indicates that. I'd be less confused if anybody could explain!

[norman]

i've got macOS high sierra and xtime composer 14.3.2 and java 1.8.0_151-b12. XTime seems to works but : impossible to use the flash command and all of the top menu - except the first one - is grey/unavailable. So it didn't for me. Can you tell me if you have or not the problem?

So I use a virtual machine with windows and then everything works but not very convenient ...

[aclassifier]

You are into something, norman. Thanks!

Update:

and all of the top menu - except the first one - is grey/unavailable.

Same for me!-(

I did get those icons (I think, just be inside xCORE Application) visible here, but flashing doesn't work any more.. I get something like this:

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Problem occured
'Launching _app_tiwisl_simple_webserver Daeafult' has encountered a problem.
An internal error occurred during: "Launching _app_tiwisl_simple_webserver Default"

That was running xTIME 14.3.2 and Java 1.8.0_151. I tried both startKIT and eXplorerKIT.

So I thought I should downgrade Java again --> It doesn't seem to work!? I should have seen that yesterday!

This is what I did: Following the url in my initial post and running the update

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Java for macOS 2017-001 installs the legacy Java SE 6 runtime

(ie downgrade) I still get

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Your system has the recommended version of Java.
Java 8 Update 151

Right now (my?) xTIME doesn't run flashing on High Sierra! And I did think to update the Aquarium controller..

Update: I tested with xTIMEcomposer 14.2.4 and I have the same problem.

Off Topic

Apple (Oracle?) didn't do their Java job. The downgrade that didn't. XMOS is behind on JRE. What's a user to do?

Forget this since 14.2.4 has the same problem, now: But about why flashing is problem and not much of the other stuff (that I of course really don't know), have XMOS done something with the fact that flashing to file then flashing from that new file didn't work, that may describe this? See http://www.teigfam.net/oyvind/home/tech ... rebuilding (disclaimer: no money, ads, gifts etc.)

[aclassifier]

Update: I posted a question on https://discussions.apple.com/message/32465326#32465326 "Downgrading Java on High Sierra"

And then I found this https://www.java.com/en/download/faq/java_mac.xml "Information and system requirements for installing and using Oracle Java on Mac OS X". There they state that:

Mac OS X and Apple Java 6 End of Life
Apple has posted notice that Mac OS X 10.11 (El Capitan) will be the last OS X release that supports Java 6, and as such, recommends developers whose applications depend on Java 6 to migrate their apps to a newer Java version provided by Oracle. » More info (apple.com)

(Dead link to apple.com)

So what the link in my initial posting (https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1572?locale=en_US) tells me to do is already said not to work. However, I did run xTIMEcomposer on El Capitan (10.11) and Sierra (10.12). So that must have been not Java 6. Too bad, I have updated on both of my machines, so I can't tell. But I assume that xTIME usually runs not Apple-supplied obsoleted Java. So maybe I can uninstall and downgrade from Oracle..

[aclassifier]

I have reported this as a Bug Report at my XMOS login.

And then I do hope I'm absolutely wrong. If it's not a bug then I would be very happy! It would at least need a thorough recipe.

UPDATE:

In https://docs.oracle.com/javase/8/docs/t ... l#BABHEJEC it says that (among other interesting things that)

The Applications > Utilities > Java Preferences application is part of Apple's implementation of Java. Once Apple no longer distributes Java as part of their release, the Java Preferences application is retired.

So maybe the Java Preferences app is unusable? And that when I expect to see changes in it, that's wrong expectation? In that case, why did Apple include it in the System Preferences?

Also, FLASHing seems to have been partially done on the startKIT! Code now runs wrongly and I can also see the bitmap of the display has some erroneous dots.

I checked in the installation log and saw that I did run xTIMEcomposer (several versions) on macOS Sierra with Java 1.8.0_144 and that did work. So maybe the problem boils down to getting that Java version installed on macOS High Sierra?

[aclassifier]

ALSO IN SPOILER AT THE TOP POST:
UPDATE 29Oct2017: After some days (as may be seen by this "me almost alone thread" here) I have downgraded again.

I used my Time Machine backup and it was ready the morning after. Recipe here: https://support.apple.com/kb/PH25593?locale=en_US

Now xTIMEcomposer is back on solid ground again.

Until XMOS updates or gives a recipe I will not reinstall macOS 10.13 High Sierra. Maybe this is even dependent on Apple and/or Oracle?

Too bad, because High Sierra nice.

[norman]

hello,
i've upgraded to high sierra 10.13.1 and it's looks better. i've didn't try to flash at this time.

[aclassifier]

10.13.1 - I downgraded Java as I had to. The menus are now present, so that's fine.

However, I am not able to FLASH it. FLASH as:

Target: [..] Refresh list -> Searching for available m_targets -> Found it
But "An internal error occured during "...-Default"

But I have the other Mac with El Capitan where everything is fine

[aclassifier]

Since I reported this as in internal issue I have now got a response that XMOS reports that the tools team is now aware that there are some issues running xTIMEcomposer on High Sierra, but that the command line tools are fully functional - and that they are working on it. Probably also an advisory document. (I was allowed to publish this here)

I'll close this when I've seen the update

[aclassifier]

If you are uncertain on how to run xflash from the Terminal window I've made a recipe. It worked for me.

See http://www.teigfam.net/oyvind/home/tech ... m_terminal (Disclaimer: no ads, gifts, money etc..)