Gfrktyl

Ubuntu 14.04 LTS
Bash version 4.3.11(1)-release

I've added $JAVA_HOME to ~/.profile (and .bash_profile) like this:

#

# This is the default standard .profile provided to sh users.

# They are expected to edit it to meet their own needs.

#

# The commands in this file are executed when an sh user first

# logs in.

#

# $Revision: 1.10 $

#



# Set the interrupt character to Ctrl-c and do clean backspacing.

if [ -t 0 ]

then

        stty intr '^C' echoe

fi



# Set the TERM environment variable

eval `tset -s -Q`



# Set the default X server.

if [ ${DISPLAY:-setdisplay} = setdisplay ]

then

    if [ ${REMOTEHOST:-islocal} != islocal ]

    then

        DISPLAY=${REMOTEHOST}:0

    else

        DISPLAY=:0

    fi

    export DISPLAY

fi





# List files in columns if standard out is a terminal.

ls()    { if [ -t ]; then /bin/ls -C $*; else /bin/ls $*; fi }



export JAVA_HOME=$(/usr/bin/java)

export PATH=$JAVA_HOME/jre/bin:$PATH

But still typing echo $JAVA_HOME yields:

XXX:~$ echo $JAVA_HOME

JAVA_HOME /usr/local/lib/jdk-8u25/

You used:

export JAVA_HOME=$(/usr/bin/java)

export PATH=$JAVA_HOME/jre/bin:$PATH

Using the variable assignment with a $() tells Linux to do a command substitution. So, it is trying to run the command /usr/bin/java and assign the output to the variable.

You should use:

export JAVA_HOME=/usr/bin/java

export PATH=$JAVA_HOME/jre/bin:$PATH

Then to make the new variables live, execute your profile script:

. ~/.profile

Note the extra . at the beginning. Without it the variable assignment would only persist within the scope of the script.