Java Development

Developed and released by the Californian firm Sun Microsystems in 1995, Java is a programming language that acts as the core constituent of the Java platform. The syntax of Java has been derived hugely from C and C++ although a more simplified object model with reduced low-level set of facilities. Recently in 2007, the class libraries, virtual machines and compilers and other Java technologies were made available for free software under the GNU Public License as in implication of the Java community Process. This also has led to alternative technologies to the Sun packet, such as GNU Classpath and GNU Compiler for Java.

Some of the features Java aimed to conquer were object-oriented programming methods and secure execution of codes from multiple sources (even remote ones) on multiple operating systems. Built-in support was also a necessity for using various computer networks.

We shall discuss two features that Java professes and have been instrumental in making it popular among developers:

Platform Independence Feature:
The Java compilers have achieved the most vital component of good programming language norms by allowing platform independence, i.e. running of the programs written in Java language similarly on any supported hardware or operating system base. This is possible as the Java language code is compiled to Java bytecode halfway through the compilation. The Java platform also provides a virtual machine (JVM) to run the code written for the language. Thus, as none of the code is run directly on the OS, platform independence is achieved with clock-like precision.

Automated Memory Management:
The Java runtime manages the lifecycle of the objects determined by the developers, and hence spares them of the tiresome chore of performing manual memory management. This is actually done through automatic garbage collection. Unreachable objects that do not have any references in the code left are automatically freed by the Java garbage collector method.

Even though Java has been the main programming language that has been used for web based applications and others for over a decade now, the .Net framework has brought about a sea change in the dominance of the former. Even though the .Net Framework is said to be the future replacement of Java, the latter still has a long way to go as far as technological advancement is concerned.