Beginning Java Objects (eBook)

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Contents 7
About the Author 22
About the Technical Reviewer 23
Acknowledgments 24
Preface 25
Introduction 26
Part 1 The ABCs of Objects 37
Chapter 1 Abstraction and Modeling 38
Simplification Through Abstraction 38
Generalization Through Abstraction 39
Reuse of Abstractions 44
Inherent Challenges 45
Summary 47
Chapter 2 Some Java Basics 50
Why Java? 50
Anatomy of a Simple Java Program 59
The “Mechanics” of Java 63
Primitive Types 67
Variables 68
Variable Initialization 70
The String Type 71
Case Sensitivity 72
Java Expressions 73
Automatic Type Conversions and Explicit Casting 77
Loops and Other Flow-Control Structures 79
Block-Structured Languages and the Scope of a Variable 88
Printing to the Screen 89
Elements of Java Style 93
Summary 98
Chapter 3 Objects and Classes 100
Software at Its Simplest 100
What Is an Object? 103
What Is a Class? 106
Instantiation 109
Encapsulation 110
User-Defined Types and Reference Variables 111
Instantiating Objects: A Closer Look 112
Objects As Attributes 120
Three Distinguishing Features of an Object- Oriented Programming Language 127
Summary 127
Chapter 4 Object Interactions 129
Events Drive Object Collaboration 129
Declaring Methods 131
Methods Implement Business Rules 141
Objects As the Context for Method Invocation 142
Method Overloading 149
Message Passing Between Objects 150
Delegation 152
Obtaining Handles on Objects 153
Objects As Clients and Suppliers 156
Information Hiding/Accessibility 158
Public Accessibility 159
Accessing Private Features from Client Code 166
The Power of Encapsulation Plus InformationHiding 172
Exceptions to the Public/Private Rule 181
Constructors 184
Software at Its Simplest, Revisited 195
Summary 197
Chapter 5 Relationships Between Objects 200
Associations and Links 200
Aggregation and Composition 206
Inheritance 207
Three Distinguishing Features of an OOPL, Revisited 242
Summary 242
Chapter 6 Collections of Objects 246
What Are Collections? 246
Three Generic Types of Collection 249
Arrays As Simple Collections 252
A More Sophisticated Type of Collection: The ArrayList Class 260
The HashMap Collection Class 273
The TreeMap Class 279
The Same Object Can Be Simultaneously Referenced by Multiple Collections 281
Inventing Our Own Collection Types 282
Collections As Method Return Types 292
Collections of Derived Types 293
Revisiting Our Student Class Design 294
Summary 303
Chapter 7 Some Final Object Concepts 305
Polymorphism 306
Abstract Classes 314
Interfaces 322
Static Features 345
Summary 359
Part 2 Object Modeling 101 362
Chapter 8 The Object Modeling Process in a Nutshell 363
The “Big Picture” Goal of Object Modeling 363
Jacquie’s Recommended Object Modeling Process,in a Nutshell 367
Summary 371
Chapter 9 Formalizing Requirements Through Use Cases 372
What Are Use Cases? 373
Actors 375
Specifying Use Cases 379
Matching Up Use Cases with Actors 380
To Diagram or Not to Diagram? 380
Summary 382
Chapter 10 Modeling the Static/Data Aspects of the System 383
Identifying Appropriate Classes 384
Producing a Data Dictionary 395
Determining Associations Between Classes 396
Identifying Attributes 400
UML Notation: Modeling the Static Aspects of an Abstraction 400
Object Diagrams 414
Associations As Attributes 416
Information “Flows” Along an Association“ Pipeline” 417
“Mixing and Matching” Relationship Notations 423
Association Classes 425
Our “Completed” Student Registration System Class Diagram 428
Metadata 434
Summary 435
Chapter 11 Modeling the Dynamic/Behavioral Aspects of the System 437
How Behavior Affects State 438
Scenarios 443
Sequence Diagrams 447
Using Sequence Diagrams to Determine Methods 452
Communication Diagrams 454
Revised SRS Class Diagram 456
Summary 457
Chapter 12 Wrapping Up Our Modeling Efforts 459
Testing the Model 459
Revisiting Requirements 460
Reusing Models: A Word About Design Patterns 462
Summary 465
Part 3 Translating an Object Blueprint into Java Code 467
Chapter 13 Rounding Out Your Java Knowledge 468
Java-Specific Terminology 468
Java Application Architecture 471
Java Archive (JAR) Files 473
Javadoc Comments 477
The Object Nature of Strings 484
Message Chains 497
Object Self-Referencing with “this” 499
Java Exception Handling 500
Enum(eration)s 528
Providing Input to Command Line–Driven Programs 536
Features of the Object Class 549
A Deeper Look Behind the Scenes of the JVM 559
The Date Class 568
Accessibility, Revisited 574
Variable Initialization, Revisited 579
Inner Classes 581
Additional J2SE 5.0 Enhancements 584
Summary 591
Chapter 14 Transforming Your Model into Java Code 594
Suggestions for Getting the Maximum Value from This and Subsequent Chapters 594
The SRS Class Diagram Revisited 595
The Importance of Model–View and Model–Data Layer Separation 644
Summary 645
Chapter 15 Rounding Out Your Application, Part 1: Adding a Data Access Layer 646
An Overview of Upcoming SRS Enhancements 648
Approaches to Object Persistence 648
The Basics of File I/O in Java 651
Populating the Main SRS Collections 658
Configuring Applications with the Java Properties Class 666
Defining Custom Exceptions for the SRS 671
Encapsulating Persistence Details 672
The Importance of Model–Data Access Layer Separation 696
Our SRS Modifications, Revisited 705
Summary 706
Chapter 16 Rounding Out Your Application, Part 2: Adding a Presentation Layer 708
Java GUIs: a Primer 709
Crafting the View/Presentation of a Java GUI 719
A Simple Calculator Example 753
An Improved Application Architecture for GUIs 756
Other Interesting AWT/Swing Components to Explore 761
Java Event Handling 762
More Container Types 788
Reusable Custom Components 796
Summary 798
Chapter 17 SRS, Take 3: Adding a GUI 800
Our SRS Code Road Map 800
Preparing a Concept of Operations 802
The MainFrame Class 810
The PasswordPopup Class: Sharing Information Across Windows/Classes 830
The SRS Driver Class, Significantly Streamlined 832
An Overview of J2EE 833
Review of the Architecture of an“Industrial-Strength” Java Application 853
Summary 856
Chapter 18 Next Steps 858
Jacquie’s “Tried and True” Approach to Learning Java Properly 859
Taming the Technology Tidal Wave 860
Other Recommended Reading 861
Your Comments, Please! 862
Part 4 Appendixes 863
APPENDIX A Suggestions for Using This Book As a Textbook 864
Recommended Teaching Approaches 864
Suitability of Java As a Teaching Language 865
Some Final Recommendations 865
APPENDIX B Alternative Case Studies 867
Case Study #1: Prescription Tracking System 867
Case Study #2: Conference Room Reservation System 869
Case Study #3: Blue Skies Airline Reservation System 871
APPENDIX C Setting Up Your Java Development Environment 873
The Java Software Development Kit 873
Testing Your Installation 874
Troubleshooting Your Installation 876
Using the Online Java Documentation with Windows 885
Special Tips for Using Microsoft Windows Command Prompts 886
APPENDIX D Downloading and Compiling the Book’s Source Code 889
APPENDIX E Note to Experienced C++ Programmers 891
No More Pointers! 891
Dynamic vs. Static Object Creation 892
Exception Handling 893
Breaking the OO Rules” with C++ 893
Platform Portability 894
Abstract Methods and Abstract Classes 894
Other Simplifications 894
APPENDIX F How Polymorphism Works Behind the Scenes (Static vs .Dynamic Binding) 896
Static Binding 897
Dynamic Binding 898
APPENDIX G Collections Prior to J2SE 5.0 901
Summary of 5.0 Collection Enhancements 901
Constraining Collection Contents 902
Iterating Through Collections 903
Managing Primitive Types with Collections 906
The Iterator Class 908
Using the -Xlint:unchecked Compiler Option 910
APPENDIX H Programming 101, and the Role of a Compiler 912
A LEGOs Analogy 912
The Compiler’s Job in a Nutshell 913
Index 917