CS2 Java Resources

Versions of Java Installed Locally

The CS2 course this year uses Java 2 version 1.3 .

We also have Java 2, version 1.4.0 beta 2, installed. (Latest Release)

Students who wish to download copies of Sun's current releases, for their own machines, can find them from the above links or the products section of Sun's website

For instructions on how to run these versions, see the links below.

Running Java

• How to run Java on the machine hall PC's
• How to run Java on the EUCS open lab PC's

Documentation

Documents listed as "local file" are mounted locally on every machine in the dcs.ed.ac.uk domain; in particular, all those in the machine halls. Other "website" links point to the same material hosted at Sun's main Java site.

• Java 1.3 standard libraries: local file - website
• Java 1.3 documentation: local file - website
• Java 1.3 library source code : local file

• Java 1.4 standard libraries: website
• Java 1.4 documentation: website

• Java Language Specification: website

Tutorials

Sun have some excellent online tutorials for basic and advanced Java programmers.

• The Java Tutorial
• New to Java Learning Center

Books

The course guide recommends three Java textbooks: you must have your own copy of at least one of these.

• (**) B. Eckel, Thinking in Java, Second Edition, Prentice Hall, 2000.
• (**) K. Arnold, J. Gosling and D. Holmes, The Java Programming Language, Third Edition, Addison Wesley, 2000.
• (**) B. Cornelius, Understanding Java, Addison Wesley, 2001.

The full text of the book by Eckel is available online with a UK mirror. We also have a local copy of the book and the example code. "Thinking in Java" is a little over 1,000 pages, so please do not attempt to print out the entire book.

Some other books.

Campione, Walrath and Huml, The Java Tutorial, 3rd edition. Addison-Wesley.

Printed version of the online hand-holding guide to how to do things in Java.

Gosling et al. The Java Language Specification, Second Edition. Addison-Wesley.

A comprehensive (and nitpicking) description of the full Java language. Also available online.

Vermeulen et al. The Elements of Java Style, Cambridge University Press, 2000.

A clean, short, style guide. Good once you know some Java.

Peter Sestoft, Java Precisely.

Concise but very detailed quick reference guide. Excellent.

Bruce Eckel, Thinking in Java, First Edition. Prentice Hall, 1998.

We have a local copy online. Unlike the newer second edition, this has a chapter on design patterns.