Java programming for non-programmers
This is the very beginning of a new tutorial for me, in progress:
Java for a first programming language
I just started it Oct 9th, 2012. So its fairly incomplete. But if it doesnt
eventually make it to more useful stuff, please feel free to give me a
nudge!
Who this is written for
This tutorial is written for a person who is trying to learn a "real"
programming language for the first time.
It ignores attempting to teach academic concepts such as "Object Oriented
Design philosophy", and instead focuses more on,
"This is how you get a program written in Java."
I try to showi things that can actually run, right from the beginning.
If, on the other hand, you are specifically looking for Object Oriented
design philosophies,
you might want to read my
Object Oriented Programming guide instead, if you
are just looking to make the transition to OOP style langauges.
If you have a unix-like machine, and have been using the command line, it
would probably be easier to learn
Korn Shell as your first programming
language. But if you really want to jump
into the deep end, I'm going to try to teach people how to program in java
"the right way, right from the start". Because there are faaarrrr too many
people learning it the wrong way, and never realising where they went
wrong.
Prerequisites
At some point, you will need to have access to:
- Java itself. Your computer probably alread has some version.
- A java compiler (usually comes with the "JDK", or developer edition)
- An editor (to edit/write programs)
At this early stage in my writing, I do not know whether to recommend a full "IDE", like
netbeans, or to do things yourself. It probably depends on how well you can
type, and what kind of operating system you are on.
If you are on some unix variant, such as linux, you may do well in command
line. However, if you are coming from a MS-Windows or MacOS environment,
you will probably prefer an "IDE" (Integrated Development Environment)
At some point, I intend to write a little intro page to using the NetBeans
IDE. But not yet.
Onward!
Now... on to the first lesson!
Temporary table of topics written so far
Objects
Primitives
Variables
Using objects