Think Java

Appendix A. Development Tools

The steps for compiling, running, and debugging Java code depend on your development environment and operating system. We avoided putting these details in the main text, because they can be distracting. Instead, we provide this appendix with a brief introduction to DrJava—an integrated development environment (IDE) that is well suited for beginners—and other development tools, including Checkstyle for code quality and JUnit for testing.

Installing DrJava

The easiest way to start programming in Java is to use a website that compiles and runs Java code in the browser. Examples include jdoodle.com, compilejava.net, tutorialspoint.com, and others.

If you are unable to install software on your computer (which is often the case in public schools and Internet cafés), you can use these online development environments for almost everything in this book.

But if you want to compile and run Java programs on your own computer, you will need:

• The Java Development Kit (JDK), which includes the compiler, the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) that interprets the compiled byte code, and other tools such as Javadoc.

• A simple text editor such as Notepad++ or Sublime Text, and/or an IDE such as DrJava, Eclipse, jGrasp, or NetBeans.

The JDK we recommend is Java SE (Standard Edition), which Oracle makes available for free. The IDE we recommend is DrJava, which is an open-source development environment written in Java (see Figure A-1).

To install the JDK, search the web for “download ...