Tame Tiger:tiger Preview version is now available

Do you want the 1.5 version of Java 2 Standard Edition Software Development Kit (SDK) without knowing where to get it? Sun has published this version through a special Web page in Javalobby. However, if you do not want to be a member of the Javalobby, you can still obtain the very early Access version. It's actually just an alpha version, and it's obsolete, but it's still available, so you can use it if you're not afraid to take risks.

Download alpha version

At the Core Java j2se 1.5 home page (see Resources) Sun does not provide any information about this limited version. You also cannot access the Early Access Downloads home page (see Resources). In spite of this lack of information, if you know where to find it, you can get a copy of Tiger. The easiest thing to do is to register for membership on Javalobby (see Resources), and if you already know the download address, you can even apply for membership without javalobby.

Access the javalobby Alpha version download link, and then click the Download link. If you are not a member of Sun Developer Network, you need to register. Otherwise, just log in and click the Continue button. The download file size is usually MB to MB, but the Solaris 9 SPARC platform needs to download less than 9 MB of file size. So choose the right download link according to your operating system. When the download is complete, the file exists locally and can be installed.

Install Tiger in Windows

Sun did not provide installation documentation on this version, so it was only on its own during the installation process. There is no technical support for installation--and no support for other aspects--when you encounter problems during the installation process to feedback. For the Win32/intel platform, first run the executable file that you just downloaded j2sdk-1_5_0-beta-bin-b31-windows-i586-11_dec_2003.exe . You will see two introductory screens (Figure 1 and Figure 2) before entering the License agreement window (Figure 3). Please read the license agreement carefully and select the I accept the terms in the License Agreement radio button and press Next.

Figure 1. Welcome screen

Figure 2. Wizard startup screen

Figure 3. License Agreement Screen