Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 3 and Java for Mac OS X 10.4, Release 8
Apple has released a pair of Java updates, Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 3 and Java for Mac OS X 10.4, Release 8. Both are described simply as "updat[ing\ the Java Web Start and Java Applet components to address security and compatibility issues." Both support all Intel- and PPC-based Macs, and require that the previous Java update already be installed. The updates are also available via Software Update.
  (Feb 13, 2009)

New Mac Java plug-in for Safari, Firefox coming?
Kirill Grouchnikov's Swing Links of the Week for November 30 makes an interesting reference to Bug 6761033 in Sun's Bug Database. "Use NPAPI for Mac OS X port of new Java Plug-In", indicated as "delivered" for 6u12(b01), refers to a new "prototype of the new Java Plug-In for Mac OS X" that uses Cocoa, making it compatible with Safari but not Firefox. The evaluation suggests Sun "collaborated with Apple to redo the Mac OS X port of the new Java Plug-In as an NPAPI and NPRuntime plugin", and now works with Safari 3.1 and nightly builds of Firefox. While it's listed as delivered for "6u12" -- update 10 and beyond have yet to appear on the Mac of course -- the bug reasserts that "We do not officially support the Mac platform so it is not feasible to write a positive test case for these changes."

Why developers prefer Macs
InfoWorld has posted an article on Why developers prefer Macs, pointing out its popularity among Ruby, .NET, and Java developers. "Java development on the Mac is also very popular, in part because all the major Java development environments are written in Java. Therefore, Eclipse, IntelliJ, and NetBeans all run about the same on Windows, Mac, and Linux boxes." It singles out the popularity of mobile development as boosting the Mac's appeal: "Google's Android SDK and RIM's BlackBerry SDK both run in Java, a language that's usually well-supported on the Mac (though Java releases for Mac tend to lag behind those for Windows, Linux, and Solaris). " However, the article also notes competition from other flavors of Unix, and James Gosling's recently delcared preference for OpenSolaris over Mac OS X.

OpenJDK 7 for Mac OS X
Landon Fuller has announced that OpenJDK7 is now runnable on Mac OS X (and the BSDs) as part of the OpenJDK BSD Port project, culminating the efforts of his SoyLatte project to bring the latest open-source JDK to the Mac. "The move to OpenJDK -- and Sun's re-licensing of the code under the GPL license -- opens the project to any interested contributor." He suggests there's more work to do with JCK conformance testing, enabling dtrace support, PowerPC and ARM support via the Zero project, Core Audio-based sound support, and more. To facilitate user testing, Landon has also posted OpenJDK 7 binaries for Darwin (and, by extension, for Mac OS X).
  (Aug 21, 2008)

Rococoa
Offering a new route to using Cocoa classes in Mac Java applications, the new Rococoa project, "is a generic Java binding to the Mac Objective-C object system. It allows the creation and use of Objective-C objects in Java, and the implementation of Objective-C interfaces in Java." Using JNA to quickly wrap Objective-C calls, the project initially started as a QTKit wrapper to expose QuickTime functionality, Rococoa examples of which are provided on a QuickTime page. Fair warning from the project owner, though: "Rococoa is very much work in progress. Much is subject to change. A lot isn't good enough not to change. But given the recent deprecation of the Java-Cocoa bridge, it's the best I've got. Just mind your head. And please give feedback."

Quaqua Look and Feel 4.1
The Quaqua Look and Feel project for Mac OS X has released version 4.1. "The Quaqua Look and Feel is a user interface library for Java applications which wish to closely adhere to the Apple Human Interface Guidelines for Mac OS X," automatically switching between appropriate looks for the Tiger, Panther, and Jaguar versions of OS X, and providing Swing implementations of NSBrowser and NSSheet. "Version 4.1 includes a FileChooserUI which roughly simulates the native file dialogs in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. Except for panel backgrounds and frame borders, Quaqua still uses the Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger design."