These Frequently Asked Questions have been divided into sections.
.411 files What are these 411 files I find on my Mavica disks?
Every time you take a picture with your Sony Mavica, the camera writes a tiny thumbnail file alongside the full-size image. These files have the extension .411 and are, by default, hidden.
What image format are the 411 files?
The files use a fairly common form of compression, but they are not a widely recognized file format. Only Javica and the Mavica can read and write .411 files.
What are the 411 files used for?
If your Mavica has an "Index" option that allows you to browse several images at once, the images you see on that index screen are not the full-size images, but the .411 thumbnails. The Mavica uses the thumbnails to avoid having to read in the full-size images. This speeds things up a lot. Javica uses the .411 files in the same way.
Can I recover a lost JPG or BMP from a 411 file?
Uh, no. Of course not. A 411 file is TINY, under 5,000 bytes. It's only 64 x 48 pixels in size. If you blow one up, it'll look like a bunch of colored squares.
What's this JVM thing??
The Java Virtual Machine (JVM) is what runs programs written in Java. Internet Explorer 4.0 and Netscape Navigator 4.0 have a JVM for running Java applets on the web. Many Operating Systems like Windows, Mac OS and Linux now come with a JVM pre-installed. Linux doesn't, as far as I know.
How do I know if I have a JVM?
If you're running Mac OS 8 or Windows 98, you probably have the JVM. If you have Windows 95 or NT 4.0 and you use Internet Explorer, you might have the JVM already.
On Mac, if you have a folder called Mac OS Runtime For Java in your Apple Extras folder, you have the JVM.
On Windows, do a file search for MSJava.dll. If you find the file, you have the JVM.
The best method for finding out may be to install Javica and try to run it. If you double-click on the Javica icon and the program doesn't launch, it's probably because you need the JVM.
Of course, these instructions are for people who don't use Linux. Chances are, if you have Linux, you know whether you have the Blackdown JDK installed or not. Installing Java on Linux is way beyond the scope of this document. I suggest you jump to the blackdown site and start reading.
Which JVM should I get?
Javica has been tested on the following platforms.
How do I get the JVM for my computer?
Windows Users, you can get the most recent version of the MicroSoft JVM here.
You Mac buffs can get the most recent version of the Apple JVM here.
Linux types can get the most recent version of the Blackdown JVM here.
All of them are rather big downloads, I'm afraid. Sorry. But it's really all for the best in the long run. With the JVM installed, you can run many thousands of Java applications in the future.
I installed Javica and when I ran it, nothing happened
This is probably because you don't have any kind of JVM. Please install one. See above.
I installed Javica on Windows and when I ran it, I couldn't view images
When you try and View an image, the window opens but it's blank, right? This problem has appeared several times and is due to a bug in the JVM that comes installed as default with Windows 95 and Windows 98. It's a much older version, like 4.79.2424. The current version is way up past 5.00.2829. To get Javica to work, you'll need to install the latest JVM from the link above.
I have the Mac JVM (MRJ) and I get an error in the console when I run Javica
One of the most common errors you will see mentions something about no such method setSize(Dimension) found in java.awt.Component. If you get this error, you are running an older version of the JVM and you should get the newest version from the sites mentioned above.
Java Virtual Machine (JVM)
