Essentials of the Java Programming Language: A Hands on Guide - Softcover

Pawlan, Monica

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0201707209 ISBN 13: 9780201707205

Publisher: Addison Wesley, 2000

Synopsis

If your students are interested in learning the Java(tm) programming language but hesitate to dive into overly dense, theoretical resources, Essentials of the Java(tm) Programming Language is the perfect starting point. This accessible, hands-on tutorial employs a "learn-by-doing" approach to introduce students to the basics. It starts with a simple program, then develops it bit by bit, adding new features and explaining important concepts with each subsequent lesson. This simple program grows into a general electronic commerce application that illustrates many of the Java 2 platform's most important elements.

Essentials of the Java(tm) Programming Language ends with an explanation of object-oriented programming concepts, made far more understandable and relevant as a result of the hands-on experience acquired throughout the book. After working through this book, you will have the foundation necessary to comfortably progress to more advanced learning materials for the Java programming language and utilize the subtleties and more sophisticated capabilities of the language.

About this title

Review

Confucius reputedly said, "I heard and I forgot, I saw and I remembered, I did and I understood." Monica Pawlan--a Sun staff writer--is clearly a big fan of Confucius. Her relatively slim (by computing title standards) book is a practical guide to getting started with Java. The book is aimed at someone with at least a basic knowledge of programming--preferably C--though you don't need to be a working programmer to benefit from it. From the beginning, the author concentrates on Java program commonalities and eschews theory in favour of practice.

Pawlan doesn't dumb anything down, though. She introduces and explains all the necessary Java jargon. What you don't get is a lot of unnecessary background theory or holy war justifications as to why this way of doing things is better than some other way. Interestingly, her approach also means you don't get the usual negative take on the difficulties involved in understanding object-oriented programming which is, after all, conceptually simpler than VCR programming.

She focuses on the kinds of thing you actually want to do, for example, showing you how to convert a simple example application into an applet. Indeed, the book builds on the early examples to--eventually--create a complete if simple e-commerce application, which is this reviewer's only complaint. E-commerce may currently be Java's natural home but a little more originality in the examples wouldn't go amiss. Despite this minor gripe, Essentials of the Java Programming Language is a concise guide to the essentials of practical Java programming, though some readers might find the fast pace stiff going. --Steve Patient

Synopsis

Thousands of programmers want to learn Java fast, hands-on -- with as little complexity and theory as possible. For them, Essentials of the JavaaA A Programming Language is the perfect starting point. Based on Monica Pawlan's wildly-popular web tutorial, this accessible, "learn-by-doing" guide covers all the fundamentals by walking through a simple program that gradually grows into a full-fledged eCommerce application which illustrates Java 2's most important programming techniques and concepts. In the first half of the book, developers master key essentials such as: building basic user interfaces; reading and writing data to files and databases; sending and receiving data across networks via RMI and sockets; compiling and running programs; and the differences between applications, applets, servlets, and JavaServer Pages. Next, Pawlan introduces more advanced concepts. In just 300 pages, developers get a complete, accurate, real-world grounding in Java -- all they need to get results fast, and shorten their learning curve as they move into more sophisticated Java development. For every programmer seeking to learn Java quickly and easily.

Edition details

• Publisher: Addison Wesley
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0201707209
• ISBN 13: 9780201707205
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 320