[GlobalNomad]

Hi,

I have just started a new cource at uni. and were doing java...

The exercise is to make something when it is clicked on it will say hello world. I have seen an example specifically for macs that use system.out.println

however this book uses two specific .class files
1. ScreenWriter.class
2. KeyboardReader.class

Is there a way of getting these to work In Mac OS X?

The book we are using is Java: A framework for Programming and Problem Solfing (Kenneth A. Lambert Martin Osborne) 2nd

Should I just install Virtual PC and use Windows or should I be ok with Mac OS X?

[Chuckit]

It should work the same on both Mac OS X and Windows, unless it's using some sort of platform-specific functionality (JNI or something), which would just be weird for something this simple. One of the big advantages of Java is that it works on any platform that has a Virtual Machine.

[GlobalNomad]

import TerminalIO.*;

public class JavaIsHot {

KeyboardReader reader = new KeyboardReader();
ScreenWriter writer = new ScreenWriter();

public void run() {
writer.println(" d ");
writer.println(" o l ");
writer.println(" l r ");
writer.println(" l o ");
writer.println(" e W ");
writer.println(" H ");
writer.println(" xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ");
writer.println(" x x x ");
writer.println(" x Java x x ");
writer.println(" x xxxx ");
writer.println(" x is hot! x ");
writer.println(" x x ");
writer.println(" x x ");
writer.println(" xxxxxxxxxxxxxx ");
}
public static void main(String[] args)
{
JavaIsHot tpo = new JavaIsHot();
tpo.run();
}
}

Hmm I can't post it to look the same, it makes a coffee mug

[Chuckit]

I just tried that and it worked fine for me. Just make sure the TerminalIO package is in the same folder as JavaIsHot.class.

Oh, by the way, you can use the "code" tag for source code and it will look right. (Well, except with Objective-C, where you have to turn off the smilies too. But that's another topic.)

[GlobalNomad]

Originally posted by Chuckit:
I just tried that and it worked fine for me. Just make sure the TerminalIO package is in the same folder as JavaIsHot.class.

Hmmm.

Let me just make sure of something, otherwise I could screw something up

What is the best way to write java. Should I use Text Edit?

Once I have mada JavaisHot.java do I then go into termenal and type javac javaishot.java .

then what do i do ?

thanks for the help.

[GlobalNomad]

LoL i can't get it to work

[Chuckit]

Well, an IDE like ProjectBuilder or NetBeans would probably be the "best way to write Java." They have syntax highlighting and other nice features that come in handy when you're doing larger programs. But for little things like this, TextEdit and the Terminal are fine.

So yeah, once you have the file, you go into the Terminal and type javac JavaIsHot.java. Then, once you've got your class file, you type java JavaIsHot (note the lack of a .class extension--you just use the class name) and you should see the neat little coffee mug screen.

[GlobalNomad]

Originally posted by Chuckit:
(note the lack of a .class extension--you just use the class name)

Do'h !

Thanks very much. This is kinda cool .

/me takes little babby steps with the help of his fellow mac users

[GlobalNomad]

[source]d
o l
l r
l o
e W
H
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
x x x
x Java x x
x xxxx
x is hot! x
x x
x x
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx[/source]

[Chuckit]

Excuse me; total mind-blank. The correct tag is "code." Don't know what I was thinking.

[Arkham_c]

Originally posted by GlobalNomad:
What is the best way to write java. Should I use Text Edit?

BBEdit is a good option. Of course, it's not free. But it has some really nice features for java development.

Another free option (if your Mac is fast) is Eclipse. It's very nice, but a bit slow on my iBook/600.

[Phanguye]

www.jedit.org

[jobim]

Originally posted by GlobalNomad:
What is the best way to write java. Should I use Text Edit?

I've used just about every Mac and pure Java IDE out there, and I have to say IntelliJ's IDEA is by far the best.

It costs money, but if you intend to do lots of serious Java devleopment, it's worth it.

http://www.intellij.com/idea/

[Catfish_Man]

Java programming in textedit is a fantastic way to get a headache. Use Eclipse if you can run it (it kicks extremely serious arse, and they're working on the performance), and Project Builder or one of the others if you can't.

[geekwagon]

Originally posted by jobim:
I've used just about every Mac and pure Java IDE out there, and I have to say IntelliJ's IDEA is by far the best.

It costs money, but if you intend to do lots of serious Java devleopment, it's worth it.

http://www.intellij.com/idea/

Agreed. The nicest thing about IDEA is that it is helpful when you want it, but not in your face when you don't. That said, I think Project Builder is a little more appropriate for an absolute beginner, because IDEs like IDEA and Eclipse will probably confuse with a lot of their terminology. Plus, it is easy to get reliant on a tool that does too much for you like a crutch.

I just tried out the new 3.0M2 version of Eclipse yesterday, I have to say that performance is very much improved in this release. I didn't use it long enough to tell how buggy it was but the performance almost seems up to the Windows version now.

Another good IDE for a beginner is jGrasp. I just went through a pair of classes on Java and this is the IDE they recommended. It doesn't do anything "for" you like the IDEs aimed at professionals, but it does make it easy for someone to simply type some code in an editor and get it to compile. It also has a halfway decent debugger that isn't overly complex for a beginner to use (unlike IDEAs debugger, which is way heavy on detail..) One word of warning though, it seems to freak out on OSX if you ever use a scroll wheel mouse.. it throws an exception and you have to relaunch it. You don't lose any data though. It's quick to launch, has a native OS X look-and-feel option, and runs as fast as a native app too.

EDIT: Forgot to mention, if you are a student, IDEA is only $99, which is great for such an awesome tool.