Are you looking for an easy programming language to learn? Maybe you’re new to the whole programming thing and want to dip your toes in the industry but don’t know what to try first.
Java can be the perfect introduction to the field. It’s simple, powerful, and universally used. Everyone needs Java programmers, so you’ll always have a fallback as long as you know Java.This article will break down what Java is and how learning it can help you. If you’ve ever wondered, “What is Java?” then reading this article might help you understand what it is.
What is Java?
Java is a programming language that was originally meant to run on set-top boxes and televisions. It was invented in 1995 for Sun Microsystems, but you can see it almost everywhere now, being used for supercomputers and data centers.
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It’s a fast, secure, and reliable programming language that has simple rules and syntax based on the C programming languages.
Many developers choose Java over Python, Ruby, Swift, C, and other modern languages. If you’re looking to be in demand, learning Java can be a great first step. Let’s see what’s so basic about Java.
How Does Java work?
To make applications in Java, you need to understand that it’s both software and programming language in one.
You’ll need to download the Java Development Kit to code in Java. After you write your code, a compiler will transform the program into what’s known as Java bytecode so that the Java Virtual Machine can understand it.
That is another part of the Java Runtime Environment that allows programs to run just about anywhere. This is one of the biggest advantages of Java there is.
Java consists of the Java Virtual Machine, the Java API, and a complete development environment to allow you to code powerful and flexible programs. The Java API comes with a huge library list that includes basic objects, networking, and security functions.
When you combine everything together, the Java programming language allows you to create powerful technology for any enterprise software development.
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What Are the Benefits of Java?
1. Java is relatively easy to use.
What is Java and its syntax? It’s easy to write and easy to understand. It’s not too difficult to maintain either. The code is easily debuggable and less complex than any of the C languages. It was based on such languages but had much of the complexities removed to allow for a more streamlined coding experience.
2. Java is an object-oriented programming language.
Java helps you improve the flexibility and reliability of all the code you create. It uses the concepts framed under object-oriented languages so that you can easily reuse the same objects in different programs to make things as convenient as possible.
Java is used to bind the data and function into a single unit so that security is improved.
The bigger modules are broken down into smaller modules so that they’re easier to handle and understand. That is another one of those famous Java benefits.
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3. Java is secure.
Java avoids using explicit pointers. That reduces the amount and severity of security threats you’ll encounter. These can result in unauthorized access to the memory, but simply removing pointers altogether solves this problem. Java also comes with a security manager for each application to define access rules for classes.
4. Java is inexpensive to maintain.
Java programs are dependent on specific hardware infrastructures to run. That means you can easily execute them on any machine and reduce the overall cost of maintaining the application.
5. Java is heavily platform-independent.
Java lets you use a compiled core that’s platform-independent. It can run on any machine and any operating system.
It makes full use of the Write Once Run Anywhere system feature. Any machine that has the Java Virtual Machine can execute Java code.
6. Java is a high-level programming language.
Java is a high-level programming language and has a deceptively simple syntax that’s easy to maintain and intuitive to learn.
That’s one of the stand-out features of Java that developers end up falling in love with. A high-level language is one that’s easy for humans to understand and write.
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7. Java is super portable.
Java has platform independence like very few other tools out there.
It can run on any platform and execute with ease. This portable superiority dramatically improves the applications of Java in all situations.
8. Java is stable.
Java programs have been shown to be much more stable when compared to programs made with other languages.
Each new version of Java comes with a heap of features and increases instability as well. Its stability is one of the primary reasons why the importance of Java can never be understated.
9. Java supports multi-threading.
Java can run on more than one thread at the same time. A single thread is the smallest possible unit of a process.
Running on more than one thread allows you to make maximum use of the CPU to make the user experience a pleasant one.
10. Java is a distributed language.
Java has mechanisms in place to share data and programs among multiple computers.
That improves the overall efficiency and performance of programs coded in Java.
In particular, it also supports Socket Programming and CORBA, which helps in sharing objects in a distributed environment.
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What Are the Real World Applications of Java?
1. Java is perfect for making GUI applications.
Think of all the APIs out there. You can make use of ones like AWT, Swing, and JavaFX to make some of the most amazing applications out there.
You can make some flashy and functional interfaces that come with all the menus, buttons, and lists that you could ever want for your windows-based applications.
2. You can make mobile apps in Java.
It’s nearly impossible to make phone apps today without the help of Java.
J2ME is a great cross-platform framework that you can use to make apps on the computer that run perfectly on almost all phones in the market.
It’s even compatible with AndroidStudio and Kotlin.
Think of the photo and video gallery apps on your phone.
Chances are, they were made with Java. Popular apps like Netflix, Uber, and Candy Crush are all made with Java.
That should give you an idea of how powerful and flexible its coding can be.
3. You can make enterprise applications with Java.
Organizations need large framework software that helps them meet the entire organization’s needs, not just its individual users.
That is where enterprise apps come in. Java is often the first choice for making such apps because it’s one of the most scalable languages out there.
Think of any banking applications on your phone. Chances are, they were made with Java because of the security that runs within the bytecode system.
4. You can make big data technologies with Java.
The largest big data framework applications on the market are made with Java. Think Hadoop.
Even its primary alternative, Apache Spark, is nothing but a sub-project of Java. Java is the programming language to know if you’re thinking of entering the big data sphere.
One of the purest object-oriented languages out there, Scala, is also entirely based on Java, focusing on making it simpler and easier to understand for developers.
Anything that can be converted into bytecode can run with Java.
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5. You can make cloud-based applications with Java.
Cloud computing is no longer cutting-edge technology but a staple one. Java and its distributed nature are ideal for technologies of these kinds.
There are plenty of cloud-based Java tools, such as the Oracle Java cloud service, which help to configure Oracle servers.
Then you have tools like Heroku Java which allow you to deploy Java apps into the cloud.
6. You can make web servers with Java.
The Java ecosystem contains plenty of web servers and application servers that are widely used in the marketplace.
Web servers are programs that use the HTTP protocol to process and store client requests made over the internet. Think of applications such as the Apache Tomcat, Apache HTTP server, and Project Jigsaw.
7. You can make software tools with Java.
Developers use Java to make applications that can analyze, create, maintain, and debug other applications and programs.
Java is an ideal tool for making such tools and is commonly used in more than just the Windows operating system.
There are Java tools for nearly every phase of software development. You can make the lives of other Java developers more manageable and make serious money at the same time.
8. You can make games with Java.
“What is Java capable of?” Well, how about making the most popular game in the world? Minecraft happens to be written in Java because it’s a versatile language popular with indie game development companies everywhere.
There’s also tons of open-source material out there, so you can jump into game development and make something fast.
Learn everything to do with libGDX. That is a framework that allows you to develop cross-platform games on Java fast. Then get on gitHub and start collaborating with other developers.
Nearly every person you know has a smartphone with Android games in it at this point. You can make great 2D games or even 3D games with the help of the jMonkeyEngine system, which allows you to open-source the most powerful 3D engine on the market.
If that seems too much to start with, simply look into making Java-based browser games that just about anyone can play instead.
Java is a powerful and versatile tool to make software that’s been in use for more than 20 years. There’s a reason it’s still in use despite several new languages popping up every few years. Java is good at what it does, and the uses of Java are many-fold.
The nearly universal portability of Java makes it popular among beginner coders because they can dive into several different fields at once with the help of Java. It’s worth learning for its sheer ubiquitousness, if not its flexibility.
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Sources:
https://math.hws.edu/eck/cs124/javanotes3/java2cpp/s2.html
https://www.javatpoint.com/history-of-java
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