[vincez]

Originally Posted by beutelwolf

Not sure this is standardised...

Oracle is the company that now owns/maintains Java, and JRE is the acronym of the Java Runtime Environment. Java applets tend to require a JRE of a certain vintage, where the standard course of action (?) may be to download a newer one from oracle should the installed be too old.

All of this is indicative that you are running Java, in some form or another, perhaps it is switched on in your browser, perhaps you are using a Java-based database, etc.

Originally Posted by highwayman274

I have completely removed Java from both of my computers, as it really isn't required to run scripts from most of the sites I visit; and it was the source of many Malware problems I experienced while running Internet Explorer and Google Chrome.

I have read a number of articles that suggest Java is an ideal "nesting place" for nasty scripts, and is often targeted by the bad guys. They also attach scripts to legitimate advertising & services sites that trigger when you visit; telling you that Java (or MS Media Player, etc.) is out of date, and inviting you to update it now.

I learned the hard way to never accept these invitations to update, and eventually decided to just get rid of Java entirely.

Originally Posted by beutelwolf

Well, Java is a full-blown programming language, which therefore, if their security manager were pants, could do some real damage to your system. Basically you should have a good reason for running Java. For example, I am running some OpenOffice HSQL databases, and they are based on a Java implementation, so I need it for that.

Many browsers switch Java off, as a default, because they regard it as too risky. That was the consequence when Oracle took over from Sun Microsystems as maintainers of Java - they didn't really keep an eye on the ball regarding security, and focused more on extra features. I gather the situation has improved since, but once you blow your reputation...

I think there is no good reason for not updating Java from Oracle (not necessarily to the newest version, but to the last "stable-looking" release), you should make sure though you get it from there, not from some random place. That aside, you should have a good reason for running Java in the first place - if not you might rather want to uninstall it, because it also takes a substantial amount of memory. Working externally (allow Java in a browser) with an older version is generally not a good idea, because older versions may have known security holes. If you just use it internally, like I use my HSQL databases then there is not much point in upgrading, unless the software using it is itself upgraded and needs a newer version to work with.

For web browsing alone Java is not really needed - there are (in relative terms) few Java applets out there on the web these days...

There was a newer version of Java released back in July. But, it was instantly flagged as having serious security flaws. So, it was recommended that nobody 'upgrade' to this newer version until Oracle patched these holes.
The newest version of Java JRE is Java 8u60.

On this computer, I have Java 8u45. I may install the newer version. But, I am still on a v.92 modem. The size of the Java update would take hours for me to download. (Unless I find a version which I can download to a flashdrive when on a faster connection, and installing it on here while off-line.) The main use I have for Java is when connecting to JMeeting; the free webcam website where I exhibit myself occasionally.
I have found that JMeeting still works with this older version. I do have to click on some boxes to allow it to run despite its notice that it is outdated.
If you have NoScript installed (and everybody should - even the TorBrowser includes it, and it wants everybody to have the exact same everything so as to minimize TorBrowser from identifying anybody), Options>Embeddings has a box where you can check/uncheck Java to run or not. I leave that checked until I want to logon to JMeeting.