cam . # .

I am running 10.3.9 as the OS. I have an ITX box running an archaic version of Linux; I think Fedora Core 1. I can easily update it to the current version of Java just by downloading the current i386 build. The 1.6 version of Java on OSX is 10.4 or higher.

Every one of your solutions involves me installing a new operating system or buying a new laptop. My system is quite stable as it is and I don't want to install a new operating system on top of it.

I don't begrudge Apple their support mechanism, but their lack of support of technologies on older operating systems will impact my future purchasing decisions, possibly negatively.