missing java plugin
I'm running Lion on an iMac. Apple recently replaced my HDD and re-installed Lion. I then re-installed everything else with Time Machine. Now when I try to run certain programs, I get an error message: Missing plugin. When I try to install Java, the Java website says the latest version if Java 7. I know from experience that a) Java won't run on Google Chrome, and b) once you let Java install ver. 7, it's **** to get rid of. Java's site says if you're looking for Java 6 for Mac OS X, run Software Update. I've done that but Software Update reports that there are no updates available.
As a sidelight, About This Mac says my OS is version 10.7.5. Don't know if this is the root of the problem. My Lion was 10.6.8 before the HDD replacement.
I could go back to pre-HDD replacement with Time Machine, but that's pretty time-consuming. Any suggestions?
iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8)