Introduction to Programming Using Java

Introduction to Programming Using Java is a free introductory computer programming textbook that uses Java as the language of instruction. This version of the book covers Java 17. It is suitable for use in an introductory programming course and for people who are trying to learn programming on their own. There are no prerequisites beyond a general familiarity with the ideas of computers and programs. There is more than enough material for a full year of college-level programming. Chapters 1 through 7 can be used as a textbook in a one-semester college-level course or in a year-long high school course. The remaining chapters can be covered in a second course.

The textbook home page, https://math.hws.edu/javanotes/, has links for downloading both web site and PDF versions of the book. Example programs and solutions to end-of-chapter exercises are part of the web site download and can also be downloaded separately. Readers are encouraged to download the source code for the examples and to read and run the programs as they read the book. Readers are also strongly encouraged to read the exercise solutions if they want to get the most out of this book.

In style, this is a textbook rather than a tutorial. That is, it concentrates on explaining concepts rather than giving step-by-step how-to-do-it guides. I have tried to use a conversational writing style that might be closer to classroom lecture than to a typical textbook. This is certainly not a Java reference book, and it is not a comprehensive survey of all the features of Java. It is not written as a quick introduction to Java for people who already know another programming language. Instead, it is directed mainly towards people who are learning programming for the first time, and it is as much about general programming concepts as it is about Java in particular. I believe that Introduction to Programming using Java is fully competitive with the conventionally published, printed programming textbooks that are available on the market. (Well, all right, I’ll confess that I think it’s better.)

There are several approaches to teaching Java. One approach uses graphical user interface programming from the very beginning. And some people believe that object oriented programming should be emphasized from the very beginning. These are not the approach that I take. The approach that I favor starts with the more basic building blocks of programming and builds from there. After an introductory chapter, I cover procedural programming in Chapters 2, 3, and 4. Object-oriented programming is introduced in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 covers the closely related topic of event-oriented programming and graphical user interfaces. Arrays are introduced in Chapter 3 with a full treatment in Chapter 7. Chapter 8 is a short chapter that marks a turning point in the book, moving beyond the fundamental ideas of programming to cover more advanced topics. Chapter 8 is about writing robust, correct, and efficient programs. Chapters 9 and 10 cover recursion and data structures, including generic programming and the Java Collection Framework. Chapter 11 is about files and networking. Chapter 12 covers threads and parallel processing. Finally, Chapter 13 returns to the topic of graphical user interface programming to cover some more advanced features.