Reasons and advantages for upgrading to Java 6 for a non-technical decider (at the client)

Question

I\'d like to upgrade from Java 5 to Java 6. We all know about the technical advantages and benefits, but:

I have the problem that a major client refuses to upgrade f

Answer 1

Since you seem to be aware of all obvious benefits of java 6, and the client has good reason to be conservative, all that's left is to stress that not switching to java 6 will hamper development.

Development will be slower because you will undoubtedly spend time on implementing functionality you get for free in newer releases. And perhaps worst of all, not upgrading on a regular basis makes an upgrade more painful as time goes by, up to the point where it becomes practically impossible.

Typically, overdue upgrades result in a highly unpredictable scenario, with a resulting production loss across the entire company over a longish period of time. (assuming the software impacts a large enough user base within the company)