I am developing an application that I plan to publicly release, or at least share with a group of people. The problem I encountered as a developer is compatibility. On my machine, I use the new Java 8, but I am afraid to use its new features, and in fact I am even afraid to use the new features in Java 7, for example try-with-resources, fearing that users will not have an updated version of Java and, therefore, will not be able to use my application. For example, my school computers still use Java 6.
First of all, am I thinking about this correctly? Or can you compile code with a new JDK launch on a machine with an old JRE? If I'm right, is there an established “rule” or compatibility standard? Something like: "Make sure your code is JRE compatible, these two versions are old!" Or is it just a developer’s question when should new features be used for released work? And just for emphasis, I'm talking about just starting a program. The user will never have to compile it.
I know this is a little open, but this is the best place I could think of. Thank.
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