Apple Mail “Missing Plugin” Errors and How to Fix

So you open your mail and your client has sent you a screenshot or image to look at and you naturally think he or she is doing something wrong. What you’re looking at is a blank image with the words “Missing Plugin” on it. The first thing I assumed was that there was a Flash update and maybe one of the browsers didn’t update correctly. I was wrong and it was me, or at least my Apple Mail program.

It turns out that during the last round of updates or possibly a software update over the weekend (I reboot my Mac so seldom it’s difficult to pinpoint which update caused it) the Java settings have been reset or updated on your computer. Here’s how you fix it (courtesy of the smart people over at Mac OS X Hints):

1. Go to Applications > Utilities
2. Click on Java Preferences.app
3. Under General (the already selected tab), click “Restore Defaults” in the top half of the app window.
4. Close Java Preferences
5. Restart Mail
6. Go back to living a happy, peaceful existence

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