Following Oracle’s long-awaited release of Java SE 8, I went through my Java-related articles and updated them to the latest version. Most benchmark results haven’t changed much, but neither has Oracle’s annoying default Windows JVM packaging. Here are some updates on this sorry subject:
Java Client VM — Java SE 8 is faster across the board in SciBench 2.0a. The Client VM gained 35% while the Server VM gained 15% (32 bit) to 20% (64 bit). While the Client VM could shrink the gap a bit, it’s still considerably slower under load. Empty startup times rose by an unnoticeable 20 msec, and I could no longer measure any startup difference at all between Client and Server VM.
The JRE once again got bigger, growing from ca. 40 to 50 MB for the 32-bit edition with the JDK’s Server VM. The new compact profiles don’t help, as they currently only check for API usage but do not actually subset the JRE (that’s supposed to be coming in Java SE 9). I did, however, delete a bunch of optional components listed in the JRE 8 Readme which saved over 20 MB in my test package.
Oracle Java on Windows — Sadly, no change there. The default 32-bit “online” installer for Windows still includes crapware, still lacks the Server VM, and still installs the useless and dangerous browser plugin. I revised the page for a better coverage of alternative options, though, including the new .tar.gz archives on the JRE 8 Downloads page. These come without installers which means you won’t get any unwanted software, but also no OS integration whatsoever. You’ll have to manually invoke java[w].exe to run Java applications. Not exactly ideal, but a nice option for power users.