very untechie old guy with two browser problems

One: Safari is VERY unresponsive. I reset (except for saved passwords and autofill) but still extremely slow. Anything else I can do?

Two: I need java to do an online newspaper crossword puzzle. Until this week it worked fine on both Chrome and Safari. Now neither browser will load crossword. Says I need java. BUT ... java download site (ORACLE) comes with warning. Basically saying Java 7 doesn't work with 32-bit Chrome browser. Should I download anyway?

I'm on a mac mini with a 2.4 GHz Intel processor running OS X 10.7.5

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

The Oracle build of Java will not work with Chrome so if you need to use Java in your browser, you'll need to use any other browser.

Safari is unresponsive how? Is the application itself slow or is it just slow in loading pages?

Hmmmm ... interesting. Before replying I checked Safari again. Very Slow on newspaper site (Globe and Mail Toronto) but ... HURRAH ... very fast and normal on other sites. (I usually use Chrome so hadn't checked response times thoroughly).

So now all I have to do is: (a) contact the Globe to see if THEY are having a problem. And (b) download the right Java plug-in for Safari. Is that correct?

Spotlight tells me I have Java VisualVM but it is not in the applications file. Should it be?

Thanks, in advance, for your help.

The G&M is loading fine here so I doubt that it's a G&M issue. It could be a DNS issue on your end though. Let's try this. Open up System Preferences > Network > click your connection (whether it be WiFi or ethernet) > Advanced > DNS. On the left hand side are DNS servers. Remove any that are there and add the following two values:

• 208.67.222.222
• 208.67.220.220

Click OK and then Apply. Restart Safari and try loading the G&M again.

As for Java, it's not an application you "see" in the traditional sense. It does all its work behind the scenes so you won't see it in /Applications.