Barry Burd - Java For Dummies

Java For Dummies, 7th Edition

Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com

Copyright 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2017932837

ISBN: 978-1-119-23555-2; 978-1-119-23558-3 (ebk); 978-1-119-23557-6 (ebk)

1. Table of Contents

Java is good stuff. Ive been using it for years. I like Java because its orderly. Almost everything follows simple rules. The rules can seem intimidating at times, but this book is here to help you figure them out. So, if you want to use Java and you want an alternative to the traditional techie, soft-cover book, sit down, relax, and start reading Java For Dummies, 7th Edition.

I wish I could say, Open to a random page of this book and start writing Java code. Just fill in the blanks and dont look back. In a sense, this is true. You cant break anything by writing Java code, so youre always free to experiment.

But let me be honest. If you dont understand the bigger picture, writing a program is difficult. Thats true with any computer programming language not just Java. If youre typing code without knowing what its about and the code doesnt do exactly what you want it to do, youre just plain stuck.

In this book, I divide Java programming into manageable chunks. Each chunk is (more or less) a chapter. You can jump in anywhere you want , or wherever. You can even start by poking around in the middle of a chapter. Ive tried to make the examples interesting without making one chapter depend on another. When I use an important idea from another chapter, I include a note to help you find your way around.

In general, my advice is as follows:

• If you already know something, dont bother reading about it.
• If youre curious, dont be afraid to skip ahead. You can always sneak a peek at an earlier chapter, if you really need to do so.

Almost every technical book starts with a little typeface legend, and Java For Dummies, 7th Edition, is no exception. What follows is a brief explanation of the typefaces used in this book:

• New terms are set in italics.
• If you need to type something thats mixed in with the regular text, the characters you type appear in bold. For example: Type MyNewProject in the text field.
• You also see this computerese font. I use computerese for Java code, filenames, web page addresses (URLs), onscreen messages, and other such things. Also, if something you need to type is really long, it appears in computerese font on its own line (or lines).

• You need to change certain things when you type them on your own computer keyboard. For instance, I may ask you to type

  public class Anyname

  which means that you type public class and then some name that you make up on your own. Words that you need to replace with your own words are set in italicized computerese .

Pick the first chapter or section that has material you dont already know and start reading there. Of course, you may hate making decisions as much as I do. If so, here are some guidelines that you can follow:

• If you already know what kind of an animal Java is and know that you want to use Java, skip . Believe me, I wont mind.
• If you already know how to get a Java program running, and you dont care what happens behind the scenes when a Java program runs, skip .
• If you write programs for a living but use any language other than C or C++, start with , itll be time to dive in.
• If you write C (not C++) programs for a living, start with .
• If you write C++ programs for a living, glance at . (Java is a bit different from C++ in the way it handles classes and objects.)
• If you write Java programs for a living, come to my house and help me write Java For Dummies, 8th Edition.

If you want to skip the sidebars and the Technical Stuff icons, please do. In fact, if you want to skip anything at all, feel free.