Current State of Java for Mac?

I have been running a server on my Mac Pro running Snow Leopard for a while now and everything has been great. More recently I have noticed that plugin developers are only making their plugins compatible with Java 7. As a result I have had to trim a few plugins or find alternatives. Obviously this wont work for the long term.

I started updating my server to Mountain Lion (10.8.2) today and found myself doing a fair bit of research on Java 7 for mac. It seems that Apple hates java and is doing everything in it's power to block it. (Please don't start with the mac vs pc shenanigans) Anyway, I have read a few articles, watched some youtube videos on it and it seems that the technology struggle is going back and forth a bit. That leaves me wondering... "What is the current state of Java for the mac?"

After upgrading to Mountain Lion and installing the Java 7 JRE detailed on the Get CraftBukkit page, I went to the terminal and ran the "java -version" command and it appears that I am still running java version "1.6.0_43" Perhaps my OS is blocking the update or I am missing a step.

So... at this point I am getting a little lost in the technology vortex and would like some feedback. What is the current recommended solution for Mac server owners that want to get updated? Do I also need to install the JDK? Do I need to run some terminal commands to force the update? Are there still issues running Minecraft and java 7 (seems there were).

Well I hope some of you knowledgeable Mac server owners or plugin developers can shed some light on the subject from our current standpoint.

I appreciate the feedback and support.

 

This probably doesn't help, but on my Windows, when I install a newer Java, sometimes it'll leave the older one there as well. Check to see if it still there.