OK. The next problem is, what if you have a bunch of different apps that require different JVMs, potentially at different versions, and you want to run them all on the same box? You can do this with JAVA_HOME, but running them in containers is a lot more convenient, and safer, because you can ship the runtime with the app. As a developer, you also don’t have to concern yourself with whether the target machine already has the correct JVM installed, and update it yourself if you like, without waiting on someone else to do it for you.
You also get the practical benefits of containers such as a convenient distribution mechanism that is language agnostic (a container registry) and abstracted management of network config like port bindings.
You’ll always be able to build a unique deployment solution for Java, python, or a native binary. But containers let you solve this problem the same way for every program.
If you think you know better, why don't you give everyone a useful, detailed solution, instead of providing curt, unsubstantive, and argumentative responses?
Per the HN Guidelines:
"Please don't post shallow dismissals, especially of other people's work. A good critical comment teaches us something."
The technology is well established now. I've noticed a similar kind of solution in the Python community, swatting flies with sledgehammers becomes the norm because modern machines can often take it. Until they can't.
That's not a solution. Telling people to go look things up themselves in some unspecified place and devise their own solutions is pretty much a giant middle finger to this community (and is still against the HN rule against shallow dismissals). It also does nothing to persuade anyone that you actually know what you're talking about, as opposed to someone who just makes shallow criticisms to scoop up HN points.
It's not hard to imagine that using a big container solution designed for another operating system (and performance hit) is not the most elegant solution here. Especially when the alternative is an environment variable and zip file you already mentioned yourself. There is no step three.