Java Programming:
A Comprehensive Hands-On Introduction

What is Java?

Java is an object-oriented programming language. Java is in the same family as C and C++ and solves many of their complexities (pointers, memory allocation, multiple inheritance, etc.). Java is also a portable language, and compiled Java programs run without recompilation on Macintosh, Microsoft Windows, UNIX and other platforms.

Java is a mature language that can be used to write entire standalone or server applications. Java has become the dominant platform for modern software development for reasons of reliability, maintainability and ease of development.

What is covered in this class?

In this course, you gain extensive experience writing, compiling and executing Java programs and building robust applications using Java's object-oriented features. You learn to create robust applications using Java class libraries, develop platform-independent GUIs, read and write data using Java streams, and retrieve data from relational databases.

What background do I need?

This course is for programmers with hands-on experience in a modern programming language such as C, Pascal or Visual Basic. You should have three to six months' experience in a high-level programming language before attending. You should know how to:

• Structure data
• Use variables, flow-control statements and subroutines
• Write, compile and execute a program

Experience with professional programming is assumed. Experience with Web technologies and object concepts is helpful.

Who will benefit from this course?

This course provides a solid introduction to programming in Java and is useful for programmers, engineers, analysts and managers. Those who would benefit include:

• Application developers intending to use Java to build applications
• Developers interested in learning the basics of Java before beginning work with a visual development environment (e.g., JBuilder, IBM WebSphere Studio).

I have designed Web pages in HTML. Is that adequate preparation for this course?

No, experience with HTML is not enough in terms of preparation for the concepts covered in this course. Experience writing several large Web sites in CGI and Perl is sufficient. Otherwise, experience in a programming language such as C, Pascal or Visual Basic is necessary.

Does this course use Sun's development tools, the JDK or any IDEs?

This course uses Sun's Java 2 SDK, Standard Edition (J2SE). This course also uses the Eclipse Java IDE.

The concepts you learn in the course will also work in Borland JBuilder, IBM WebSphere Studio and other Java IDE tools.

Does this course cover JavaScript? Does this course cover JScript?

No. JavaScript is a scripting language, useful to system administrators and Webmasters, to enhance some aspects of Web pages. JavaScript shares some features of Java but is not directly related.

JScript is Microsoft's implementation of a JavaScript-like language. Neither JavaScript nor JScript are covered in this course. For a course specific to JavaScript, please see Course 489, JavaScript for Web Development: Hands-On.

Are Microsoft extensions to Java covered?

This course concentrates on the standard Java features that work in all development environments and in all Java runtimes. Therefore, extensions are not covered in this course.

What systems and software are used with this course?

The normal classroom set-up uses PCs running Windows Server with the latest browsers. However, everything you learn about Java applies equally to UNIX, Macintosh, Windows, OS/2 and other operating systems.

How much time is devoted to each topic?

How much time in this course is devoted to hands-on exercises?

Approximately 50 percent of class time is spent in hands-on exercises. Exercises include:

• Developing an object-oriented model with UML notation
• Creating Java objects and calling their methods
• Structuring data with the Java collections API
• Creating portable GUIs with Swing components
• Adding event handling to GUIs
• Retrieving data from a relational database with JDBC

How does this course relate to other Learning Tree courses?

Courses in our Java curriculum that may be of interest include:

• 516, Best Practices in Java Programming: Hands-On is an ideal follow-on to Course 471 and provides the skills to solve real-world software development problems and deliver fast, reliable applications
• 517, Developing Enterprise Java Applications with Spring and Hibernate®: Hands-On offers the skills to develop scalable enterprise Java applications using the industry-standard Spring and Hibernate frameworks
• 318, Building Java Enterprise Applications with Design Patterns: Hands-On provides experience developing OO designs in Java and C++ using design patterns
• 570, Developing Java Web Applications: Hands-On provides hands-on experience developing and deploying enterprise Web applications with Java servlets, JavaServer Pages and XML technologies
• 577, Building XML Web Services with Java: Hands-On provides the knowledge and skills to design and build Web services using Java

For those who would like a more in-depth treatment of object-oriented principles, you might consider:

• 424, Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA): A Comprehensive Hands-On Introduction provides a solid foundation in the concepts, modeling, design and implementation of SOA