Basic Concept of
Cross-Platform Programming
and Java
Slides based on “Absolute Java,” by Walter Savitch (3rd
edition), Pearson Addison-Wesley
Introduction To Java
• Most people are familiar with Java as a
language for Internet applications
• We will study Java as a general purpose
programming language
– The syntax of expressions and assignments will be
similar to that of other high-level languages
– Details concerning the handling of strings and
console output will probably be new
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Origins of the Java Language
• Created by Sun Microsystems team led by James
Gosling (1991)
• Originally designed for programming home
appliances
– Difficult task because appliances are controlled by a wide
variety of computer processors
– Team developed a two-step translation process to simplify
the task of compiler writing for each class of appliances
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Origins of the Java Language
• Significance of Java translation process
– Writing a compiler (translation program) for each type of
appliance processor would have been very costly
– Instead, developed intermediate language that is the same
for all types of processors : Java byte-code
– Therefore, only a small, easy to write program was needed
to translate byte-code into the machine code for each
processor
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Objects and Methods
• Java is an object-oriented programming (OOP)
language
– Programming methodology that views a program
as consisting of objects that interact with one
another by means of actions (called methods)
– Objects of the same kind are said to have the
same type or be in the same class
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Terminology Comparisons
• Other high-level languages have constructs
called procedures, methods, functions, and/or
subprograms
– These types of constructs are called methods in
Java
– All programming constructs in Java, including
methods, are part of a class
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A Sample Java Application Program
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[Link]
• Java programs work by having things called
objects perform actions
– [Link]: an object used for sending output
to the screen
• The actions performed by an object are called
methods
– println: the method or action that the
[Link] object performs
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[Link]
• Invoking or calling a method: When an object
performs an action using a method
– Also called sending a message to the object
– Method invocation syntax (in order): an object, a dot
(period), the method name, and a pair of parentheses
– Arguments: Zero or more pieces of information needed by
the method that are placed inside the parentheses
[Link]("This is an argument");
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Variable declarations
• Variable declarations in Java are similar to
those in other programming languages
– Simply give the type of the variable followed by its
name and a semicolon
int answer;
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Using = and +
• In Java, the equal sign (=) is used as the assignment
operator
– The variable on the left side of the assignment operator is
assigned the value of the expression on the right side of
the assignment operator
answer = 2 + 2;
• In Java, the plus sign (+) can be used to denote
addition (as above) or concatenation
– Using +, two strings can be connected together
[Link]("2 plus 2 is " + answer);
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Tip: Error Messages
• Bug: A mistake in a program
– The process of eliminating bugs is called
debugging
• Syntax error: A grammatical mistake in a
program
– The compiler can detect these errors, and will
output an error message saying what it thinks the
error is, and where it thinks the error is
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Tip: Error Messages
• Run-time error: An error that is not detected until a
program is run
– The compiler cannot detect these errors: an error
message is not generated after compilation, but after
execution
• Logic error: A mistake in the underlying algorithm
for a program
– The compiler cannot detect these errors, and no error
message is generated after compilation or execution, but
the program does not do what it is supposed to do
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Identifiers
• Identifier: The name of a variable or other item
(class, method, object, etc.) defined in a program
– A Java identifier must not start with a digit, and all the
characters must be letters, digits, or the underscore
symbol
– Java identifiers can theoretically be of any length
– Java is a case-sensitive language: Rate, rate, and RATE
are the names of three different variables
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Identifiers
• Keywords and Reserved words: Identifiers that have
a predefined meaning in Java
– Do not use them to name anything else
public class void static
• Predefined identifiers: Identifiers that are defined in
libraries required by the Java language standard
– Although they can be redefined, this could be confusing
and dangerous if doing so would change their standard
meaning
System String println
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Naming Conventions
• Start the names of variables, classes, methods, and
objects with a lowercase letter, indicate "word"
boundaries with an uppercase letter, and restrict the
remaining characters to digits and lowercase letters
topSpeed bankRate1 timeOfArrival
• Start the names of classes with an uppercase letter
and, otherwise, adhere to the rules above
FirstProgram MyClass String
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Variable Declarations
• Every variable in a Java program must be declared before it is
used
– A variable declaration tells the compiler what kind of data (type) will
be stored in the variable
– The type of the variable is followed by one or more variable names
separated by commas, and terminated with a semicolon
– Variables are typically declared just before they are used or at the start
of a block (indicated by an opening brace { )
– Basic types in Java are called primitive types
int numberOfBeans;
double oneWeight, totalWeight;
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Primitive Types
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Assignment Statements With Primitive Types
• In Java, the assignment statement is used to
change the value of a variable
– The equal sign (=) is used as the assignment operator
– An assignment statement consists of a variable on
the left side of the operator, and an expression on
the right side of the operator
Variable = Expression;
– An expression consists of a variable, number, or mix
of variables, numbers, operators, and/or method
invocations
temperature = 98.6;
count = numberOfBeans;
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Assignment Statements With Primitive Types
– When an assignment statement is executed, the
expression is first evaluated, and then the variable on the
left-hand side of the equal sign is set equal to the value of
the expression
distance = rate * time;
– Note that a variable can occur on both sides of the
assignment operator
count = count + 2;
– The assignment operator is automatically executed from
right-to-left, so assignment statements can be chained
number2 = number1 = 3;
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Tip: Initialize Variables
• A variable that has been declared but that has not
yet been given a value by some means is said to be
uninitialized
• In certain cases an uninitialized variable is given a
default value
– It is best not to rely on this
– Explicitly initialized variables have the added benefit of
improving program clarity
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Tip: Initialize Variables
• The declaration of a variable can be combined with
its initialization via an assignment statement
int count = 0;
double distance = 55 * .5;
char grade = 'A';
– Note that some variables can be initialized and others can
remain uninitialized in the same declaration
int initialCount = 50, finalCount;
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Shorthand Assignment Statements
• Shorthand assignment notation combines the assignment
operator (=) and an arithmetic operator
• It is used to change the value of a variable by adding,
subtracting, multiplying, or dividing by a specified value
• The general form is
Variable Op = Expression
which is equivalent to
Variable = Variable Op (Expression)
– The Expression can be another variable, a constant, or a more
complicated expression
– Some examples of what Op can be are +, -, *, /, or %
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Shorthand Assignment Statements
Example: Equivalent To:
count += 2; count = count + 2;
sum -= discount; sum = sum – discount;
bonus *= 2; bonus = bonus * 2;
time /= time =
rushFactor; time / rushFactor;
change %= 100; change = change % 100;
amount *= amount = amount *
count1 + count2; (count1 + count2);
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reserved
Assignment Compatibility
• In general, the value of one type cannot be stored in
a variable of another type
int intVariable = 2.99; //Illegal
– The above example results in a type mismatch because a
double value cannot be stored in an int variable
• However, there are exceptions to this
double doubleVariable = 2;
– For example, an int value can be stored in a double
type
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Assignment Compatibility
• More generally, a value of any type in the following list can be
assigned to a variable of any type that appears to the right of
it
byte→short→int→long→float→double
char
– Note that as your move down the list from left to right, the range of
allowed values for the types becomes larger
• An explicit type cast is required to assign a value of one type
to a variable whose type appears to the left of it on the above
list (e.g., double to int)
• Note that in Java an int cannot be assigned to a variable of
type boolean, nor can a boolean be assigned to a variable
of type int
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Constants
• Constant (or literal): An item in Java which has one
specific value that cannot change
– Constants of an integer type may not be written with a
decimal point (e.g., 10)
– Constants of a floating-point type can be written in
ordinary decimal fraction form (e.g., 367000.0 or
0.000589)
– Constant of a floating-point type can also be written in
scientific (or floating-point) notation (e.g., 3.67e5 or
5.89e-4)
• Note that the number before the e may contain a decimal point,
but the number after the e may not
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Constants
• Constants of type char are expressed by placing a
single character in single quotes (e.g., 'Z')
• Constants for strings of characters are enclosed by
double quotes (e.g., "Welcome to Java")
• There are only two boolean type constants, true
and false
– Note that they must be spelled with all lowercase letters
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Arithmetic Operators and Expressions
• As in most languages, expressions can be
formed in Java using variables, constants, and
arithmetic operators
– These operators are + (addition), - (subtraction),
* (multiplication), / (division), and % (modulo,
remainder)
– An expression can be used anyplace it is legal to
use a value of the type produced by the
expression
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Arithmetic Operators and Expressions
• If an arithmetic operator is combined with int operands,
then the resulting type is int
• If an arithmetic operator is combined with one or two
double operands, then the resulting type is double
• If different types are combined in an expression, then the
resulting type is the right-most type on the following list that
is found within the expression
byte→short→int→long→float→double
char
– Exception: If the type produced should be byte or short (according
to the rules above), then the type produced will actually be an int
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Parentheses and Precedence Rules
• An expression can be fully parenthesized in order to
specify exactly what subexpressions are combined
with each operator
• If some or all of the parentheses in an expression are
omitted, Java will follow precedence rules to
determine, in effect, where to place them
– However, it's best (and sometimes necessary) to include
them
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Precedence Rules
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Type Casting
• A type cast takes a value of one type and produces a value of
another type with an "equivalent" value
– If n and m are integers to be divided, and the fractional portion of the
result must be preserved, at least one of the two must be type cast to
a floating-point type before the division operation is performed
double ans = n / (double)m;
– Note that the desired type is placed inside parentheses immediately in
front of the variable to be cast
– Note also that the type and value of the variable to be cast does not
change
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Increment and Decrement Operators
• The increment operator (++) adds one to the
value of a variable
– If n is equal to 2, then n++ or ++n will change the
value of n to 3
• The decrement operator (--) subtracts one
from the value of a variable
– If n is equal to 4, then n-- or --n will change the
value of n to 3
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Increment and Decrement Operators
• When either operator precedes its variable, and is
part of an expression, then the expression is
evaluated using the changed value of the variable
– If n is equal to 2, then 2*(++n) evaluates to 6
• When either operator follows its variable, and is part
of an expression, then the expression is evaluated
using the original value of the variable, and only then
is the variable value changed
– If n is equal to 2, then 2*(n++) evaluates to 4
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The Class String
• There is no primitive type for strings in Java
• The class String is a predefined class in Java that is used to
store and process strings
• Objects of type String are made up of strings of characters
that are written within double quotes
– Any quoted string is a constant of type String
"Live long and prosper."
• A variable of type String can be given the value of a
String object
String blessing = "Live long and prosper.";
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Concatenation of Strings
• Concatenation: Using the + operator on two strings in order
to connect them to form one longer string
– If greeting is equal to "Hello ", and javaClass is equal to
"class", then greeting + javaClass is equal to "Hello
class"
• Any number of strings can be concatenated together
• When a string is combined with almost any other type of item,
the result is a string
– "The answer is " + 42 evaluates to
"The answer is 42"
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Classes, Objects, and Methods
• A class is the name for a type whose values are objects
• Objects are entities that store data and take actions
– Objects of the String class store data consisting of strings of
characters
• The actions that an object can take are called methods
– Methods can return a value of a single type and/or perform an action
– All objects within a class have the same methods, but each can have
different data values
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Classes, Objects, and Methods
• Invoking or calling a method: a method is called into
action by writing the name of the calling object,
followed by a dot, followed by the method name,
followed by parentheses
– This is sometimes referred to as sending a message to the
object
– The parentheses contain the information (if any) needed
by the method
– This information is called an argument (or arguments)
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String Methods
• The String class contains many useful methods for string-
processing applications
– A String method is called by writing a String object, a dot, the
name of the method, and a pair of parentheses to enclose any
arguments
– If a String method returns a value, then it can be placed anywhere
that a value of its type can be used
String greeting = "Hello";
int count = [Link]();
[Link]("Length is " +
[Link]());
– Always count from zero when referring to the position or index of a
character in a string
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Some Methods in the Class String (Part 1 of 8)
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Some Methods in the Class String (Part 2 of 8)
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Some Methods in the Class String (Part 4 of 8)
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String Indexes
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Escape Sequences
• A backslash (\) immediately preceding a
character (i.e., without any space) denotes an
escape sequence or an escape character
– The character following the backslash does not
have its usual meaning
– Although it is formed using two symbols, it is
regarded as a single character
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Escape Sequences
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String Processing
• A String object in Java is considered to be immutable, i.e.,
the characters it contains cannot be changed
• There is another class in Java called StringBuffer that has
methods for editing its string objects
• However, it is possible to change the value of a String
variable by using an assignment statement
String name = "Soprano";
name = "Anthony " + name;
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Naming Constants
• Instead of using "anonymous" numbers in a program, always
declare them as named constants, and use their name instead
public static final int INCHES_PER_FOOT = 12;
public static final double RATE = 0.14;
– This prevents a value from being changed inadvertently
– It has the added advantage that when a value must be modified, it
need only be changed in one place
– Note the naming convention for constants: Use all uppercase letters,
and designate word boundaries with an underscore character
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Comments
• A line comment begins with the symbols //, and
causes the compiler to ignore the remainder of the
line
– This type of comment is used for the code writer or for a
programmer who modifies the code
• A block comment begins with the symbol pair /*,
and ends with the symbol pair */
– The compiler ignores anything in between
– This type of comment can span several lines
– This type of comment provides documentation for the
users of the program
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Program Documentation
• Java comes with a program called javadoc
that will automatically extract documentation
from block comments in the classes you define
– As long as their opening has an extra asterisk (/**)
• Ultimately, a well written program is self-
documenting
– Its structure is made clear by the choice of identifier
names and the indenting pattern
– When one structure is nested inside another, the
inside structure is indented one more level
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Comments and a Named Constant
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