Overview of Java
What is java?
Developed by Sun Microsystems (James Gosling)
A general-purpose object-oriented language
Based on C/C++
Designed for easy Web/Internet applications
Widespread acceptance
Java Features (1)
Simple
fixes some clumsy features of C++
no pointers
automatic garbage collection
rich pre-defined class library http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4.2/docs/api/
Object oriented
focus on the data (objects) and methods manipulating the data
all functions are associated with objects
almost all datatypes are objects (files, strings, etc.)
potentially better code organization and reuse
Java Features (2)
Interpreted
java compiler generate byte-codes, not native machine code
the compiled byte-codes are platform-independent
java bytecodes are translated on the fly to machine readable
instructions in runtime (Java Virtual Machine)
Portable
same application runs on all platforms
the sizes of the primitive data types are always the same
the libraries define portable interfaces
Java Features (3)
Reliable
extensive compile-time and runtime error checking
no pointers but real arrays. Memory corruptions or unauthorized
memory accesses are impossible
automatic garbage collection tracks objects usage over time
Secure
usage in networked environments requires more security
memory allocation model is a major defense
access restrictions are forced (private, public)
Java Features (4)
Multithreaded
multiple concurrent threads of executions can run
simultaneously
utilizes a sophisticated set of synchronization primitives (based
on monitors and condition variables paradigm) to achieve this
Dynamic
java is designed to adapt to evolving environment
libraries can freely add new methods and instance variables
without any effect on their clients
interfaces promote flexibility and reusability in code by specifying
a set of methods an object can perform, but leaves open how
these methods should be implemented
can check the class type in runtime
Java Disadvantages
Slower than compiled language such as C
an experiment in 1999 showed that Java was 3 or 4 times slower
than C or C++
title of the article: “Comparing Java vs. C/C++ Efficiency Issues to
Interpersonal Issues” (Lutz Prechelt)
adequate for all but the most time-intensive programs
Environment Setup
Sun Solaris OS JDK (latest version)
Java JDK is freely available from the link
Download Java. You can download a
version based on your operating system.
Follow the instructions to download Java
and run the .exe to install Java on your
machine.
Install JavaTM 2 Platform on your machine
Can be installed on different platforms:
Unix/Linux
Windows
Mac OS
Follow the on-line instructions:
http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/getStarted/cupojava/index.html
Popular Java Editors
To write your Java programs, you will
need a text editor such as:
Notepad: On Windows machine, you can use
any simple text editor like Notepad, TextPad.
Netbeans: A Java IDE that is open-source and
free, which can be downloaded from
http://www.netbeans.org/index.html.
Eclipse: A Java IDE developed by the eclipse
open-source community and can be
downloaded from http://www.eclipse.org/.
Getting Started: (1)
(1) Create the source file:
open a text editor, type in the code which defines a class
(HelloWorldApp) and then save it in a file (HelloWorldApp.java)
file and class name are case sensitive and must be matched
exactly (except the .java part)
Example Code: HelloWorldApp.java
/**
* The HelloWorldApp class implements an application
* that displays "Hello World!" to the standard output
*/
public class HelloWorldApp {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// Display "Hello World!"
System.out.println("Hello World!");
}
}
Java is CASE SENSITIVE!
Getting Started: (2)
(2) Compile the program:
compile HelloWorldApp.java by using the following command:
javac HelloWorldApp.java
it generates a file named HelloWorldApp.class
‘javac’ is not recognized as an internal or
external command, operable program or hatch file.
javac: Command not found
if you see one of these errors, you have two choices:
1) specify the full path in which the javac program locates every
time. For example:
C:\j2sdk1.4.2_09\bin\javac HelloWorldApp.java
2) set the PATH environment variable
Getting Started: (3)
(3) Run the program:
run the code through:
java HelloWorldApp
Note that the command is java, not javac, and you refer to
HelloWorldApp, not HelloWorldApp.java or
HelloWorldApp.class
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.NoClassDefFoundError:
HelloWorldApp
if you see this error, you may need to set the environment variable
CLASSPATH.
Language basics (1)
Data types
8 primitive types:
boolean, byte, short, int, long, float, double, char
Class types, either provided by Java, or made by programmers
String, Integer, Array, Frame, Object, Person, Animal, …
Array types
Variables
dataType identifier [ = Expression]:
Example variable declarations and initializations:
int x; x=5; int[] intArray;
boolean b = true; intArray = new int[2];
Frame win = new Frame(); intArray[0] = 12;
String x = “how are you?”; intArray[1] = 6;
Person pArray = new Person[10];
Language basics (2)
Flow of control
if, if-else, if-else if
switch
for, while, do-while
break
continue
Supplemental reading
Getting Started
http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/getStarted/index.html
Nuts and bolts of the Java Language
http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/java/nutsandbolts/index.html
Compiling and Running a Simple Program
http://developer.java.sun.com/developer/onlineTraining/Programming/
BasicJava1/compile.html
