Java for Non-Developers | Getting Started with Programming, OO, and Java Basics

At Course Completion

Learning how to code and become a modern software developer is like trying to learn and become fluent in a new spoken language. Learning any new language takes study, practice, more study, and more practice, to truly be able put your newly learned skills to work in a practical way. This course won't make you an experienced developer in the five days we have with you, but we'll ensure that you're provided with a solid introduction to coding basics, along with real hands-on experience programming in Java. All while focused on learning how to Think Like a Programmer. Please note that this course is for beginners new to programming, but it is technical in nature. Our instructors are there to guide you through the process and provide you with a trusted platform to dig into something new, ask questions, and leave the class ready to take the next steps in your learning journey.

Working in a lab-intesive hands-on learning environment, guided by our expert team, you’ll explore:

· The steps involved in the creation and deployment of a computer program

· What OO programming is and what the advantages of OO are in today's world

· How to work with objects, classes, and OO implementations

· The basic concepts of OO such as encapsulation, inheritance, polymorphism, and abstraction

· The basic constructs that all programming languages share

· The basic Java constructs supporting processing as well as the OO orientation

· How to use Java exception handling

· How to use classes, inheritance and polymorphism

· How to use collections, generics, autoboxing, and enumerations

· How to take advantage of the Java tooling that is available with the programming environment being used in the class

Audience Profile

This course is intended for anyone who is new programming, and wants to start learning how to code using Java. Please note that although this course is for beginner-level students, it is technical in nature. If you're moving from a truly non-technical role into coding for the first time, please reach out to us for some additional guidance or light course prep suggestions which can really be helpful before you jump into this course head-on. We want your experience to be exciting, challenging and useful, without being overwhelming. We're here to help!

Prerequisites

Before attending this course, you definitely should be able to:

· Use computers to start programs, open and save files, navigate application menus and interfaces

· Understand logical concepts such as comparisons

· Understand number theory

· Create, understand, and follow structured directions or step-by-step procedures

· Understand and apply abstract concepts to concrete examples

Outline

Session: Introduction to Computer Programming

Lesson: Introduction to Programming

· What is a Computer Program?

· Problem Solving using Programs

· The Spectrum of Programming Languages

Lesson: Requirements to Production

· Starting with Requirements

· Designing a Program

· Implementing the Program

· Converting Source Code to Machine Language

· Executing Machine Language

· Testing to Requirements

· Deploying to Production

Lesson: Programming Tools

· Design Tools

· Development Tools

- Code Editors

- Documentation

- Compilers

- Debuggers

· Execution Tools

- Runtime Environments

- Interpreters

- Libraries

· Testing Tools

Session: Programming Fundamentals

Lesson: Thinking About Objects

· Real-World Objects

· Programming Objects

· State and Functionality

· Classes as a Template for Instances

· Working with a Class

- A Class Diagram

- Implementing the Class

- Compiling the Class

- Executing the Class

Lesson: Program Basics

· Different Languages, Different Syntax

· Features of Any Program

- Entry Point

- Instructions

- Exit Points

· Why Break a Program Apart?

Lesson: Programming Constructs

· Handling Data:

- Variables and constants

- Arrays, Lists and Queues

· Handling Functionality

- Methods

- Pre-defined Functionality

§ Handling Flow Control

- Decision structures

- Repetition (loops)

Session: Java: A First Look

Lesson: The Java Platform

· Java Platforms

· Lifecycle of a Java Program

· Responsibilities of JVM

· Documentation and Code Reuse

Lesson: Using the JDK

· Setting Up Environment

· Locating Class Files

· Compiling Package Classes

· Source and Class Files

· Java Applications

Lesson: The Eclipse Paradigm

· Workbench and Workspace

· Views

· Editors

· Perspectives

· Projects

Lesson: Writing a Simple Class

· Classes in Java

· Class Modifiers and Types

· Class Instance Variables

· Primitives vs. Object References

· Creating Objects

Session: OO Concepts

Lesson: Object-Oriented Programming

· Real-World Objects

· Classes and Objects

· Object Behavior

· Methods and Messages

Lesson: Inheritance, Abstraction, and Polymorphism

· Encapsulation

· Inheritance

· Method Overriding

· Polymorphism

Session: Getting Started with Java

Lesson: Adding Methods to the Class

§ Passing Parameters into Methods

· Returning a Value from a Method

· Overloaded Methods

· Constructors

· Optimizing Constructor Usage

Lesson: Language Statements

· Operators

· Comparison and Logical Operators

· Looping

· Continue and Break Statements

· The switch Statement

· The for-each() Loop

Lesson: Using Strings

· Strings

· String Methods

· String Equality

· StringBuffer

· StringBuilder

Lesson: Specializing in a Subclass

· Extending a Class

· Casting

· The Object Class

· Default Constructor

· Implicit Constructor Chaining

Session: Essential Java Programming

Lesson: Fields and Variables

· Instance vs. Local Variables: Usage Differences

· Data Types

· Default Values

· Block Scoping Rules

· Final and Static Fields

· Static Methods

Lesson: Using Arrays

· Arrays

· Accessing the Array

· Multidimensional Arrays

· Copying Arrays

· Variable Arguments

Lesson: Java Packages and Visibility

· Class Location of Packages

· The Package Keyword

· Importing Classes

· Executing Programs

· Java Naming Conventions

Session: Advanced Java Programming

Lesson: Inheritance and Polymorphism

· Polymorphism: The Subclasses

· Upcasting vs. Downcasting

· Calling Superclass Methods from Subclass

· The final Keyword

Lesson: Interfaces and Abstract Classes

· Separating Capability from Implementation

· Abstract Classes

· Implementing an Interface

· Abstract Classes vs. Interfaces

Lesson: Exceptions

· Exception Architecture

· Handling Multiple Exceptions

· Automatic Closure of Resources

· Creating Your Own Exceptions

· Throwing Exceptions

· Checked vs. Unchecked Exceptions

Session: Java Developer's Toolbox

Lesson: Utility Classes

· Wrapper Classes

· The Number Class

· Random Numbers

· Autoboxing/Unboxing

· The Date Class

Lesson: Enumerations and Static Imports

· Enumeration Syntax

· When You Should Use Enumerations

· Using Static Imports

· When You Should Use Static Imports

Lesson: Formatting Strings

· StringJoiner

· String.format

· System.out.printf

· The Formatter class

· Using the formatting syntax

Bonus Content / Time Permitting

Session: Collections and Generics

Lesson: Introduction to Generics

· Generics and Subtyping

· Bounded Wildcards

· Generic Methods

· Legacy Calls to Generics

· When Generics Should Be Used

Lesson: Collections

· Characterizing Collections

· Collection Interface Hierarchy

· Iterators

· The Set Interface

· The List Interface

· Queue Interface

· Map Interfaces

· Using the Right Collection

· Collections and Multithreading