Java has had a contentious relationship with browsers for several years in light of a litany of security vulnerabilities that plague the platform. The most widespread effect these changes will bring about is the end of Java in the browser. However, support for IE 11 will remain for those requiring ActiveX and nonstandard rendering for IE 5.5 compatibility mode.
For Windows 10, a new plugin system for Spartan is planned, but details have not yet been made available. PPAPI is not a standardized technology - it is only supported in Chrome and Opera, and Mozilla has no plans to include it in Firefox. Oracle has not provided a PPAPI-compatible plugin for Java, nor has Microsoft for Silverlight. In Chrome, Flash support is contained in the new PPAPI plugin system. That is not to say that these changes will bring about the end of all plugins.
Project Spartan in Windows 10 is being positioned as the leaner, faster replacement to IE, shedding features such as IE 5.5 compatibility mode, and ActiveX extensions - effectively, the same step as is being taken in Chrome.įor most users, the removal of NPAPI is a welcome change - modern web design is now focused on HTML5 and JavaScript, removing the need for additional plugins, which are often fraught with security vulnerabilities and memory leaks, or a measurably negative impact on battery life. For Internet Explorer (IE), this is achieved using ActiveX.
Other embedded content types, such as Adobe Flash, Microsoft Silverlight, and Java applets are displayed in most browsers via NPAPI. Some games are designed for the web using the Unity NPAPI plugin. Occasionally, some websites require it as a form of DRM, such as the coupon printer. NPAPI was first introduced in 1995 as part of Netscape Navigator 2.0 to allow content types not otherwise supported to be viewed in the browser - using video plugins such as RealPlayer, QuickTime, or VLC. Both of these changes prevent the use of Java in either browser.Ī recently released update to Chrome has brought a plan to the forefront that has been brewing behind the scenes since 2013: the deprecation of NPAPI (Netscape Plugin Application Programming Interface) Now, NPAPI support is hard disabled in Chrome, and support for NPAPI will be completely removed from Chrome 45 in September 2015. Google Chrome 42 disables NPAPI support by default, and Project Spartan lacks ActiveX support entirely.
Java gets browser eviction notices from Spartan and Chrome 42