Installing Java 1.6 on OSX

It seems Apple has been lagging behind releasing a general update for Java for OSX Tiger. Rumour has it that Leopard will include java 1.6, however some people need it now. The good news is that it can be installed on Tiger now with the following steps.

1. Go to connect.apple.com, and register/log in. You will need an account to do this.
2. Go to the downloads section and select “Java” on the right hand side menu
3. Download “Java SE 6.0 Release 1 DP6 (Disk Image)”
4. Once downlaod is complete, and launch the installer
5. Complete the steps in the installer
6. Launch Terminal, and issue these commands:

# cd /System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.framework/Versions
# sudo rm CurrentJDK
(enter your password)
# sudo ln -s 1.6 CurrentJDK

This will set Java 1.6 to be your default java installation.