After having to fuzz for a while trying to get Java Plugin enabled for Firefox in my SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11.3, I have decided to document it on my blog. Unfortunately the instruction on the Java/SUN/Oracle site is misleading probably for being out dated & did not work for me. Below is what I have done to get it working:

First: If you have not installed Java yet then follow the below instructions to install it else skip to the second step

a. download it from Java Download Site

b. At the terminal: Type: su
c. Enter the root password.

d. Change to the directory in which you want to install. Type:
cd
For example, to install the software in the /usr/java/ directory, Type:
cd /usr/java

Note about root access: To install the JRE in a system-wide location such as /usr/local, you must login as the root user to gain the necessary permissions. If you do not have root access, install the JRE in your home directory or a subdirectory for which you have write permissions.

e. Change the permission of the file you downloaded to be executable. Type:
chmod a+x    jre-6u21-linux-x64-rpm.bin

f. Verify that you have permission to execute the file. Type:
ls -l

g. To start the installation process, type:
./jre-6u21-linux-x64-rpm.bin

Note: If the file is in the current directory, prepend it with “./”

This displays a binary license agreement. Read through the agreement. Press the spacebar to display the next page. At the end, enter yes to proceed with the installation. type YES to agree to the license agreement

h. Wait the installation to complete

Second: Link to the Firefox plugin in order for Java to work in FireFox:  (This is the part that is outdated on the Java website)

In order for Java to work in recent versions of Firefox you will need to create a link to the Java plugin depending on which firefox arch you run (32 bit/64bit) the plugin can be located in one of the two below locations:

for 32 bit: ${JAVA_HOME}/jre/lib/i386/libnpjp2.so

for 64 bit: ${JAVA_HOME}/jre/lib/amd64/libnpjp2.so

for 32 bit Place links to the plugin in /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins using the below command

ln -s ${JAVA_HOME}/jre/lib/i386/libnpjp2.so /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/libnpjp2.so

ex: ln -s  /usr/java/jre1.6.0_21/lib/i386/libnpjp2.so /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins/libnpjp2.so

for 64 bit Place links to the plugin in /usr/lib64/mozilla/plugins using the below command

ln -s ${JAVA_HOME/jre1.6.0_21/lib/amd64/libnpjp2.so /usr/lib64/mozilla/plugins

ex: ln -s /usr/java/jre1.6.0_21/lib/amd64/libnpjp2.so /usr/lib64/mozilla/plugins

After that restart your Firefox, & you should be up and running. if you want to ensure that Firefox has found the Java plugin you can type about:plugins         in the Firefox browsing bar & the Java plugin should be listed among your plugins.

I hope this help!!! & happy Java surfing!!!