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Java Coffee Break Newsletter Volume 2 Issue 09
Java Coffee Break Newsletter Volume 2, Issue 9
http://www.javacoffeebreak.com/
ISSN 1442-3790
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In this issue
* We've moved - to www.javacoffeebreak.com
* Java in the news
* Book Reviews - Java Programming for Beginners
* Q&A : How do I get the length of a string?
* Q&A : What are the Java Certification exams?
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We've moved location
Over the past two years of publication, the Java Coffee Break
has gone from strength to strength. What started out as a small
hobby site has become a fully fledged e-zine publication. I'd
like to thank all my readers, both of the online site and this
newsletter, for their interest and support over the years.
With the large increase in visitors to the site, and subscribers
to this newsletter, the time has come for the Java Coffee Break
to move to its own domain name. You can now find all of our
published articles, tutorials, reviews & FAQ's at the a new
location,
http://www.javacoffeebreak.com/
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In the News
Here are a selection of recent news items that may be of
interest to Java developers.
/*/ Sun announces beta of Java 2 SDK v1.3
Sun has announced a beta edition of JDK1.3, complete
with many new features, including
* networking & distributed systems (RMI/IIOP, JNDI)
* graphical changes (Swing, AWT, Java 2d)
* extensions to java.math, java.util & java.lang
* a special edition of HotSpot tuned for client apps
For more information, see the complete list available
at http://java.sun.com/products/jdk/1.3/docs/relnotes/features.html
/*/ Microsoft legal victory against temporary injunction
Microsoft has won a substantial legal victory, by
turning a temporary injunction barring it from
distributing products that contain Java technology.
More details of the ongoing legal saga are available at
http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/21402.html
/*/ Sun releases the magic details
Details of Microprocessor Architecture for Java Computing
(MAJC) have finally been released by Sun. Not only is MAJC
designed to speed up multimedia for Java applications, but
also for C++ applications as well. Further details on the
new MAJC chip can be found at :
http://www.sun.com/microelectronics/MAJC/
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Q&A: How do I get the length of a string?
Working with strings under Java is far easier than with other
languages. Most languages represent a string as a data type, or
as an array of characters. Java however treats strings as an
actual object, and provides methods that make string manipulation
far easier.
Strings under Java are represented by the java.lang.String class.
Since the java.lang package is imported by every Java application
or applet, we can refer to it just as String. To determine the
length of a String, simply call the String.length() method, which
returns an int value.
String aString = "this is a string. what is my length?";
int length = aString.length();
System.out.println (aString);
System.out.println (length);
TIP - Remember that the String class is zero-indexed. Even though
the String is of length n, you can only access characters in the
range 0..n-1
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Q&A: What are the Java Certification exams?
Industry certification helps to distinguish skilled software
developers from the pack, and to give employers an idea of the
skill level of candidates. There's a certain amount of prestige
associated with certification (ask anyone who has studied for,
and passed a certification exam), and its usually a good measure
of skills. Like other vendors (such as Microsoft), Sun
Microsystems offers certification for its flagship - the Java
language. This certification is suited to Java programmers and
developers.
There are two levels of Java certification available currently,
and there are plans to expand into three levels in the future (in
conjunction with Netscape and other vendors). Currently, Sun
offers the following :-
Sun Certified Java Programmer for JDK1.02, JDK1.1 & Java 2
Sun Certified Java Developer for JDK1.02, JDK1.1 & Java 2
What does certification involve?
Passing the Sun Certified Java Programmer exam involves answering
a series of multiple choice questions. Sound easy enough? There's
a little more to it though - you must select ALL the right
answers, without missing any or adding extra ones. Often the
difference between one answer and another is subtle, and it
requires a good understanding of the language and the base
Java APIs. There's no reference material allowed, and to make it
even tougher, a score of 70% or over is required to pass. The
second level of certification involves an additional programming
task. You'll be given specifications, and have to implement the
system (involving actual coding). This involves a more extensive
coverage of the Java APIs, but there's often more than one way to
solve a problem.
Should I sit the exams?
Before attempting either exam, you'd be well advised to pick up
an exam guide. Most guides offer sample exams, which give you an
idea of the way the questions work. You'd need to have extensive
Java experience (programming every day), for a reasonable amount
of time. I'd say that you'd need between six months and one
year's experience, unless you decided to cram. Coming from
someone who has passed the exam, it's not an easy thing to do,
and re-sitting the exam would be costly. (For the record, I
passed first time round!)
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