ABSTRACT
Java is a programming language introduced in 1995. Its main strength when compared with other object-oriented languages of its time (C++ being the most important) was its portability: Java was designed to be architecture-neutral, so that Java programs written on a Mac,† for example, would behave exactly in the same way as on Windows‡ and Linux machines, and in fact on any platform that supports Java. This design, coupled with built-in security measures, modern object-oriented programming features, and easily accessible graphical user interface (GUI) and I/O, signicantly reduced development work and made Java a favorite among programmers worldwide. A basic introduction to Java is presented in Appendix A, and readers who are unfamiliar with Java are advised to read this appendix rst.
