Download Section 1.3. What makes Java powerful language?

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Core Java: Chapter 1. Introduction to Java
Section 1.3. What makes Java powerful language?
The key components that makes Java a powerful programming language are discussed in this section.
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S e ct ion 1.3. Wh at ma ke s Ja va po we r fu l l an gu a ge?
Section 1.3. What makes Java powerful language?
Objective:
The key components that makes Java a powerful programming language are discussed in
this section.
Overview:
Following are the main reasons that make Java a powerful programming language:
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Java Language is Platform Independent.
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Java Applets
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Portability
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Security
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Java Applications
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Object Oriented Programming Language
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Multi National Language Support
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Java Buzzwords
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Java Libraries & Support
Java Language is Platform Independent:
The most important characteristics of Java is that it is designed to execute on any machine,
any device, any operating system unchanged. Java source code is not directly compiled into
machine instructions but it is converted into intermediate code which is understood by the
Java Virtual machine and converts it into machine instructions.
This helps developers in many ways, as developers can concentrate only on the implementation of the logic rather wondering how the device will understands it. There is no confusion
or doubt that code will have issues on any specific device. This saves lots of effort and time
in developing, supporting and maintaining the major applications.
To read in details about Why Java is Platform Independent? - Click here
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Java Applets:
An Applet is a special kind of Java program that is designed to be transmitted over the Internet and automatically executed by a Java-compatible web browser. Applets changed the
way how contents can be transferred to client machine and execute program on browser.
Applets are very secured programs that is executed on user browser. Applet cannot break
the system in any way as it has limited control on the user system.
Also, Applets are not downloaded by default this service is download on demand. If a user
click on link that contains an applet, the applet will be automatically downloaded and run in
the browser. They are intended to be small programs easily transmitted over network.
This concept addressed two major issues in the internet world: Portability and Security
Portability:
In the Internet world, the major requirement of the program is to be portable and should able
to execute in any user computer with any operating system and hardware. Provided with this
challenge, Applets are portable programs that is executed in Java virtual machine and independent of the end user machine and operating system.
Hence, Portable code can be written using Java language which works on any end user machine.
Security:
There is huge risk in downloading any programs from internet and executing on your machine as it may contain virus or Trojan horse. These virus programs can gain unauthorized
full control on the system and cause heavy damage to the machine.
Applets was allowed to be downloaded on the machine and execute on the users machine
but the security was provided to this program by allowing it to execute with in the Java virtual machine.
The ability to download applets with confidence that no harm will be done and that no security will be breached is top most innovative aspect of Java.
Java Applications:
An application is a program that runs on your computer, under the operating system of that
computer. One of the biggest disadvantages of desktop application programming language
like VB, VC++ are they are dependent on the underlying operating system.
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Applications written using Java has the same look and feel on any operating system and
hardware. This provides lots of advantage to the Java application because developer no need
to worry about the design incompatibility.
Object Oriented Programming Language:
Object Oriented Programming is a powerful approach to organize the programming. With
the invention of programming language and with increasing complexity of the code there
was a need of methodology which can help reduce the programming complexity.
Early stages of programming gave birth to Structured programming like C and Pascal.
Structured programming is mostly concentrated on how “code will be acting on the data”
and each steps in the program is executed sequentially.
With the increasing complexity, there was many approach to organize the structure programming and with the innovative methodologies Object Oriented approach was introduced.
Object-oriented programming took the best ideas of structured programming and combined
them with several new concepts. OOP was opposite to the structure programming approach.
OOP concept is “data controlling access to the code” rather “code accessing its data”. Objects were created with data and methods in it. Then based on the requirement and data behavior its methods are executed.
OOP made Java a strong programming language with simple and easy to extend functionality. Maintenance, Support and Robustness of the program is highly increased.
Multi National Language Support:
Java has a built-in ability to support national character sets. The beauty of Java language is
that it can be written and output in any specified language. One program can change its output language based on the environment language settings.
Automatic adaptation of environment language is the powerful feature of Java.
Java Buzz Words:
James Gosling and team listed out these buzz words to explain the features of java and why
it is considered as powerful programming language.
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Simple
Secure
Portable
Object-oriented
Robust
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Multithreaded
Architecture-neutral
Interpreted
High performance
Distributed
Dynamic
To read in details about Java Buzzwords - Click here
Java Libraries & Support:
Most of the software enhancements are small and incremental improvements. But right after
Java 1.0 release, designers team already created Java 1.1. The enhancements of Java was
providing cut edge library release which satisfy the current industry needs. Java 1.1 not only
added new features to Java 1.0 but also deprecated unwanted libraries which set the right
expectation for the programmers.
The next major release was Java 2, where the 2 indicates second generation.. Java 2
added support for number of new features, such as Swing and the Collections Framework
with enhanced Java Virtual Machine. Java version followed from Java 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6
and 1.7.
Java releases was not only for the programmers support but also Java Virtual Machine
(JVM) was released for variety of platform and hardware.
Summarize:
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Java is Platform Independent, Portable and Secured.
Java is a Object-Oriented Programming Language.
Secured web programming can be done using Java.
Java has a strong libraries support to develop complex programs.
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