Blarg #6: How do I become an expert Java developer?

Hi,

I'm a young java programmer(for now) and on the brink of writing my SCJP1.4 exam I want to be a Java Developer(J2EE) more than anything else. I've picked up REALLY REALLY bad coding conventions and norms along my path to Java-enlightenment and I would like to know from YOU, what could I do to turn this around and become a precision Java Developer, Are there Rules and Guidelines (in ENGLISH) that I can follow that will set me apart as a "developer of note"?

Hi Lloyd, depending on who you ask there are many different answers to this question. However, a great way to get started is by reading the Java coding conventions Sun encourages -- most all Java code you see will roughly follow these. These conventions fall along the lines of standard Java documentation, which is the next place you should look when seeking advice about Java. As a rule of thumb, check Java documentation first and goggle second.

If you really want to practice coding or look at a bunch of "good" code, try hacking away at your favorite open-source project (I'd suggest Tomcat, http://jakarta.apache.org/tomcat, or JBoss, http://jboss.org). You'll find lots of code that will show how general Java code usually looks, and you will also be able to see lots of examples of clever coding tricks. Plus, if you can really understand what is going on in a decent sized open-source project, odds are your Java skills are up to snuff.

Some Links

• Java 2 Documentation - http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4.2/docs/index.html
• Java Coding Conventions - http://java.sun.com/docs/codeconv/html/CodeConvTOC.doc.html
• Java Language Specification - http://java.sun.com/docs/books/jls/second_edition/html/j.title.doc.html
• Java Virtual Machine Specification - http://java.sun.com/docs/books/vmspec/2nd-edition/html/VMSpecTOC.doc.html

Jayson Falkner

jayson@jspinsider.com

http://www.jspbook.com