Java, or Not

vanp said:

Ghot, thanks for responding.

Since posting, I've done a little research. I've seen references to some programs also uninstalling plugins, etc. Will most or all do that? Will Revo do that, meaning for Java Toolkit? Is there no way to do this without re-installing? I could restore a system image if necessary to get it back.

For one of these uber uninstallers to work...the whole program has to be there for it to work on.
I pretty much use Revo Uninstaller to uninstall anything. It'll even uninstall MS apps.

First it uninstalls, then give you the option to scan for registry entries, and lastly, if necessary, gives you the option to remove general leftovers.

Thanks, Ghot, I'll take that under advisement.

Helmut, I did say in my OP I had used the Java uninstall tool after realizing everything wasn't gone.

Guys, if I restore Java, should I use the Java uninstall tool or use a separate uninstall product?

Thanks again.

EDIT: Helmut, I forgot to say that I don't know that I need Java; it's just on my machine--don't know that I did anything to put it there. If it turns out that I need it I guess I can always re-install it.

@vanp

If you want to know more, Java is the same thing as Microsoft's .NET framework:
https://dotnet.microsoft.com/learn/d...what-is-dotnet

You have surely seen .NET components on your PC, in fact these are part of Windows.

Java or .NET is "managed runtime environment" ( MORE INFO HERE ), which means programs that depend on them do not communicate to hardware as directly like other programs, instead they communicate to runtime environment which in turn forwards commands to hardware.

Therefore lack of runtime environment (Java or .NET) would cause such programs to fail, they wouldn't even start.
Program that depends on Java cannot make use of .NET to function or vice versa.

One slight and relevant difference between Java and .NET is that Java is today mostly used by web apps, (in browser ex. browser games) but it's so rare and unpopular almost nobody use it anymore.

If you ever come to such website it's not a mistake to close the website instead of installing Java due to many known security issues.

So to answer your question, do you need Java?
No, unless you really want to run Java dependent program or visit Java depended website, I personally did not come to such requirement for over several years, I don't even remember any more.

vanp said:

Will an uninstall program get rid of the Java Toolkit?

Other members already gave you good answer to this and that will surely work if you want to make sure to get rid of remnants (registry keys, files and folders)

Uninstalling Java by simply going to:
System -> Apps and then removing it there will get rid of Java.

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IF you want to manually get rid of remnants (which pose no threat other than wasting small amount of disk space) then:
1. First remove Java related folders from:
- C:\Program Files
- C:\Program Files (x86)
- C:\ProgramData
- C:\Users\YOUR_USERNAME\appdata\...\
2. To get rid of Java remnants in your browser, reset it factory defaults (will get rid of your personal preferences, so make sure to export bookmarks and note down settings)
3. Run disk cleanup (cleanmgr.exe) for your account as well as Administrator to clean up leftover temporary items and recycle bin
3. Open up registry as Administrator (regedit.exe) and use CTRL + F followed by repeated F3 to find java keys.
Make sure to delete only keys and values from registry that you 100% are sure are leftover from Java installation.
Strongly recommended to back up registry before doing any changes:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/...9-d428a2ab0692