Franklin & Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College

ERP

Browser and Java Recommendations

The College is in the process of implementing a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system to manage the internal and external resources of the institution utilizing a single software system and a single database. In higher-education institutions, standard ERP applications typically include student and academic information, financial aid, human resources, financial management, admission and institutional advancement.

Browsers

The software vendor for F&M's ERP system fully supports the following browser versions:
  • Windows: Internet Explorer 7 and 8
  • Mac: Safari 5
Other browsers such as Internet Explorer 9, Firefox, and Chrome may have cosmetic or functional issues with some features.
 

Java

Depending on their job function, some employees may need to access a part of the ERP system called “Banner INB.” This requires Java software to operate. The latest vendor-supported version of Java is version 1.6, also referred to as Java 6.
 
There are issues with Java version 1.7, also referred to as Java 7,  which may prevent Banner from working as designed. At this time the issues appear to be mostly cosmetic with slighty truncated text shown in some forms. In the login window you cannot use the Tab key to move to the password field; click the password box to enter your password.
 
A compatible version of Java 6 for Windows can be downloaded from http://www.java.com/en/download/manual_v6.jsp. On a Macintosh, either Java will be pre-installed or the Mac OS will offer to install it for you when you first try to run a Java application. Java on a Macintosh can be updated via the Software Update command in the Apple menu.
 

Java for Mac OS X Update

If you have a Macintosh and have installed the “Java for OS X 2012-004” update or one of the later Java updates, you may experience issues when using Banner INB for the first time. After the Java update, when you click a link to open Banner INB one of three things will happen: Banner will work correctly, a window will open that contains the message "Inactive Plug-in," or a blank window will open.
 
If a window opens with the Inactive Plug-in message, do the following:
  1. Click the region labeled "Inactive Plug-in" to activate the Java plug-in
  2. Quit the browser
  3. Restart the browser
  4. Click the Banner INB link again
 
If a blank window is displayed, do the following:
  1. Quit all browser and Java applications
  2. In the Applications folder open the Utilities folder
  3. In the Utilities folder open the Java Preferences application
  4. In the Java Preferences window, check the box "Enable applet plug-in and Web Start applications." If the box is already checked then toggle it off and back on.
  5. Open a browser
  6. Click the Banner INB link again


Java 7 for Mac OS X 

As mentioned above, the issues with Java 7 and Banner appear to be mostly cosmetic. If you find issues that prevent Java 7 from working on your Mac, please contact the ITS Call Center.