Deprecated Java 1.6

[mcohen]

Hi. Here at the University of Aizu (in Fukushima, Japan), we are avid users of Alice 2, which has served well for many years. However, with the version-up of our exercise room iMacs to macOS Sierra 10.12 this summer, our university computer center refuses to install the legacy Java version 1.6, due to fears of security weaknesses. Without this package Alice won't run
(http://alice3.pbworks.com/w/page/580...lice%202_3#OSX),
so we hope that the Alice team is working on a modern release that can run with contemporary Java releases. Does such restriction apply also to Alice 3? If such a release is not forthcoming, for Alice 2 or 3, i fear that we won't be able to use Alice any more (with a whole cascade of related problems that would cause). Is the Alice team working on modernizing the code base? If so, when can a release free of the shackles of legacy Java be expected? Thanks for any reassurance, or else candid admission that such development is not happening, allowing us to properly plan our curriculum.