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Comment by mixmastamyk | Hacker News Reader

    bin/pycharm.sh 
    ERROR: Cannot start PyCharm
    No JDK found. Please validate either PYCHARM_JDK, JDK_HOME or JAVA_HOME environment variable points to valid JDK installation.

I wish this had been mentioned up front, before I spent all that time watching videos and such. :/ Nothing against java per se, just that it's a giant runtime/security-surface that has no bearing on my Python work.

I'm still happy with Geany, gvfs, meld, and terminal, etc... though they might not be as flashy. :)

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JVM security concerns are irrelevant when you are running a desktop application. You aren't running it as root, and you aren't executing arbitrary code as if you were running applets.

If arbitrary code is able to access the JVM on your computer, then you already have arbitrary code running on your computer.

Ok, though I still believe "less is more". Also prevents my browser from doing anything clever, like enabling the browser extension behind my back.

If you're truly worried about the second point, to run JetBrains software all you need is to download the jvm somewhere on your system (it's just a directory) and set the JAVA_HOME variable before starting it:

export JAVA_HOME=/my/install/dir; bin/pycharm.sh

There is really no conceivable way that your browser would be scanning your operating system looking for a downloaded JVM (if it does that, it's not a browser, it's a virus.)

If you truly are religiously against jvm it's w/e to me, but the security concerns are not valid.

Sorry, not going to set up a custom runtime for an editor. Note the "giant runtime" concern I put first.

I'd use the system java/browser which has an extension available, no need to scan. FF just enabled javascript for everyone without their permission, and Chrome does plenty of shady things. The fewer software installed, the better. I prefer to stay far away from potential security problems, with multiple hurdles whenever possible. If it makes you feel better I don't install flash or ruby either unless the situation calls for it.

imo you are making huge tradeoffs for very little benefit, as there is no such thing as a 100% secure system anyway. But still its your decision, to each their own.

I learned this paranoia while running Windows XP through the 2000's and I can tell you it served me very well. While others were rebuilding their systems I was working.

I realize Linux in 2013 is not so dangerous, but take a gander at recent java security bulletins when you get a chance anyway. Steve Gibson recommends not even having it installed if you don't need it (I don't) and that's good enough for me.

Also, I think you may be overselling the trade-offs. I've not been inconvenienced in the last decade of avoiding java, as far as I can remember. On occasion I will install random things into a VM for temporary experimentation.

> I realize Linux in 2013 is not so dangerous, but take a gander at recent java security bulletins when you get a chance anyway.

Off the top of my head, all of the recent serious vulnerabilities were applet related. The JRE doesn't require a Java plugin for your browser, no plugin, no applets.

>I'd use the system java/browser which has an extension available, no need to scan. System java? Which OS (barring Oracle Linux) ships with JRE pre-installed? Browser extension for Java? I assume your familiarity about the Java ecosystem has not been updated since HotJava (or whatever it was called).

sudo apt-get install ...

Same here, though I've been following JetBrains for a while. I wish there was some way they could port it to OS X without depending on Java.

There is no way they would 'port' away from Java. JetBrains has been building this platform for more than a decade. This is what has allowed them to support many operating systems concurrently and with great results. No need for the FUD on Java. Java is really what they excel at.

Nah, why OSX only? I'd welcome them porting it to LLVM Clang, so that we can run it on all platforms with more speed and natively. Linux ftw :)

Why does it matter? You can't even notice it's java except having to have it on your system. And why is having it a bad thing? The security issues are the browser plugin, not the JVM.

On the other hand I love using Pycharm on Windows and Linux. I also love the fact that should I choose to use a Mac, Pyharm would be working just the same.

IntelliJ IDEA product familly is really well done. They do not feel javan at all.

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