# java IDE?



## Braveheart (Mar 9, 2009)

whats the best java IDE for a beginner java programmer?


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## Gzero (Mar 9, 2009)

Netbeans probably, bluej is confusing if you don't have the textbook.


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## Braveheart (Mar 9, 2009)

does it work similar to Visual Studio?


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## FordGT90Concept (Mar 10, 2009)

I used Eclipse.  It was very similar to Visual Studio .NET.  Not as finished as Visual Studio .NET but most of the features that matter to me (like auto complete) behaved the same way.


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## Braveheart (Mar 10, 2009)

im liking netbeans...


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## sno.lcn (Mar 10, 2009)

I started out with BlueJ (it's what we were using in class at the time) now I use Eclipse and like it much much better.  In retrospect, BlueJ was 'okay' at best for beginning Java.


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## Gzero (Mar 10, 2009)

Good luck.


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## Matt Sakko (Mar 10, 2009)

JGrasp is by far the best in my opinion.  As a beginner, you must find a user friendly IDE. If you don't, you will lose motivation.
Conclusion: Netbeans or JGrasp. Ideally JGrasp.


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## h3llb3nd4 (Mar 10, 2009)

Try jGrasp...
My skool uses it


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## Matt Sakko (Mar 10, 2009)

What?!  Mine too.  I am in an IEB school.
Sorry off topic but you are from Durban so...


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## morpha (Mar 12, 2009)

Eclipse was a little awkward for me when I started using it.

Netbeans is close to how visual studio looks and feels..


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## Braveheart (Mar 13, 2009)

ok thanks guys...does anyone know what the College standard is for Java?


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## Gzero (Mar 13, 2009)

College standard? I guess you mean what they use on Higher education courses.
My Uni prefers that we just use notepad and the java compiler. But they made us start with bluej since it's quick and easy to inspect individual classes with.


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## FordGT90Concept (Mar 13, 2009)

There is no standard IDE for college.  My college encouraged me to find the one I like the best.  As long as you get the source files to the instructor, they really don't care.


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## Braveheart (Mar 13, 2009)

really? ok..i thought maybe colleges had one they all use or something.


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## Yukikaze (Mar 13, 2009)

Eclipse is great. I exclusively use it for my java and j2ee programming, ever since the 1st university course I took about the language.


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## Braveheart (Mar 13, 2009)

ok well im liking netbeans and eclipse...but i don't think im going to do much with Java until i start a class...C# is enough to keep me busy until than.


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## Oliver_FF (Mar 17, 2009)

Netbeans is the IDE that I always use...
Well, I usually use the terminal and javac. Did you know java has an equivalent of C's make? It's called Ant.

BlueJ is actually developed at my University so it's everywhere - I've had some lectures with both David Barnes and Michael Kolling (authors of the book), they're both dudes . I don't like how it hides the main method away from the user and implies to new people that your programs are bound to this small bench in this other program.

You'll find that as you get better at writing code you won't need the debugger, then most IDE's become really heavyweight and you'll start to fallback to basic text editors and the terminal.


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## Gzero (Mar 18, 2009)

You should see my perl output


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## morpha (Apr 13, 2009)

we all know perl programmers are supremist nazi's. Because Perl is the master language.

but thats off topic. This is about Java.


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## Yukikaze (Apr 13, 2009)

Oliver_FF said:


> You'll find that as you get better at writing code you won't need the debugger



Famous last words ?


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## SonDa5 (Apr 13, 2009)

Java rocks.... 

I'm going to try out the netbeans.


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## FordGT90Concept (Apr 13, 2009)

The only thing Java has on C# is that it is cross-platform.


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## jagass (Apr 13, 2009)

I agree that Netbeans is the best...


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## morpha (Apr 13, 2009)

jagass said:


> I agree that Netbeans is the best...



correct.



FordGT90Concept said:


> The only thing Java has on C# is that it is cross-platform.


which is also its weakness because C# doesnt require a JRE (runtime enviroment) to be installed.


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## FordGT90Concept (Apr 13, 2009)

C# requires the .NET Framework which is the equivalent of the Java Runtime Environment.

.NET is embedded in Vista and Server 2008.  Sun will probably sue Microsoft one of these days for embedding .NET but not JRE.


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## morpha (Apr 13, 2009)

I dont know if you could really say .NET is the same as JRE.

JRE is used exclusively by Java, whereas .NET is used by all of the Microsoft programing languages. Its more of a code library...


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## Gzero (Apr 13, 2009)

Morpha, you just passed the ball back in Sun's court: Java works on Linux/unix/flavours AND Windows.


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## morpha (Apr 15, 2009)

yes, I know that... but .NET doesnt...


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## FordGT90Concept (Apr 15, 2009)

morpha said:


> I dont know if you could really say .NET is the same as JRE.
> 
> JRE is used exclusively by Java, whereas .NET is used by all of the Microsoft programing languages. Its more of a code library...


JRE and .NET Framework are both interpreters.  .NET handles multiple languages and JRE only one.  That's a benefit to .NET but it still doesn't make them unalike.  Java applications won't run without JRE and C#.NET and VB.NET won't run without the .NET Framework.  JRE has been released for multiple operating systems while .NET Framework has only been released for the Windows family of operating systems...

Remember, Java was the inspiration for .NET Framework.  Back in 1998, Microsoft released J++ which was a Microsoft, Java-esque language that ran on the JRE.  Sun sued and Microsoft was forced to discontinue J++.  In the following four years (1998-2002), Microsoft created their own runtime that would offer the benefits of JRE without being JRE so Sun would be powerless to act.  The result was the .NET Framework and J#.NET.  Because Microsoft didn't want to support multiple languages completely separate of each other (J#, C++, and Visual Basic), they also ported those languages to also be .NET Framework compliant.  They included C# (a hybrid of J# and C++) as well.  It is likely .NET Framework wouldn't be what it is today if it weren't for Sun suing Microsoft over the JRE.

They have more in common with each other than not.


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## morpha (Apr 17, 2009)

WOW thats a nice piece of history...

also. I stand corrected.


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