===== Step 3: Install Java Development Kit =====
To install this, simply go to the Java home page ([[http://java.sun.com|java.sun.com]]) and look for the link for Java SE (below **Popular Downloads** on the right-hand side). I would normally recommend installing the latest stable version (which at the time of writing was Java 6 update 7) but I had problems installing this on my Vista notebook, so I installed the release candidate of Java 6 update 10 instead.
Full installation instructions are [[http://java.sun.com/javase/6/webnotes/install/jdk/install-windows.html|available from sun]] but here I show you how I completed the process on my machine.
* Step 3.1: Download and install Java Development Kit (JDK)
* Points to note:
* Download JDK installer
* Install JDK to an easy to find directory: I suggest a "root" directory of ''C:\Java'' rather than ''C:\Program Files\Java'' (the installation directory will be ''C:\Java\jdk1.6.0_X'')
* Step 3.2: Verify that the installation works, by opening a command window and typing ''java -version''. If Java is correctly installed it should report something like ''java version "1.6.0_10-rc"''. If you want to run the compiler (''javac''), document generator (''javadoc'') or other tools, you need to set your system's ''PATH'' variable to include the installation directory you just created. The next video covers these steps. But in summary:
* Open control panel, system. Choose advanced settings and select evironment variables. Create a system variable ''JAVA_HOME'' and set it to the Java installation directory you chose at the previous step.
* Add ''%JAVA_HOME%\bin;'' (note the semicolon!) to the front of the ''PATH'' variable.
* Open a new command window and verify that command ''javac'' works.
* Java is now set up on you machine.
**Important note for Vista Users**:
If you attempt to install Java 6 update 7 and the installation stops with an Error 1721 follow the [[http://java.com/en/download/help/6000070400.xml|advice given here]] to turn off virus checking, scan for spyware, and temporarily disable the UAC (User Access Control) feature for your account and reinstall from the installer that you downloaded in the previous step. It may work (although for me it didn't). Java 6 update 10 RC **did** work for me.
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