Unlike my previous deployment posting, this is no joke.

Instead, this is a simple deref to an article that has just been posted on java.sun.com: Auto-Install: Easier Launching of Java Web Start Applications. We wrote this after Thomas Ng and I were playing around with a demo (linked from the article) to make auto-launching of a webstart app a bit easier.

The Auto-Install technology, an ActiveX component that simplifies webstart install and launching from within IE browsers, has been around since 1.5, although the documentation for it was buried in the release notes so its existence was probably not well known. But beyond this piece for IE, there are some techniques you can use in other browsers to make installation and web start launching a lot easier for your users.

The deployment team is working on more technologies to make deploying applications and JREs even easier. But in the meantime, check out the article, check out the demo, check out Auto-Install, and let us know how it all works for you.

Okay, I lied. I simply can't resist the opportunity for more bad deployment jokes. It's just a thing I have.

    Q: What's the difference between an application that's Java Web
    Start enabled and an application that's not?
    A: One's deployable, the other's deplorable.

Okay, I'm done.