The Java(TM) Class Libraries: Supplement for the Java(TM) 2 Platform, v1.2; Parts A and B(Volume 1, Standard Edition) [Paperback]

Patrick Chan (Author), Rosanna Lee (Author), Douglas Kramer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 28, 1999 | ISBN-10: 0201485524 | ISBN-13: 978-0201485523 | Edition: 1

Continuing the successful format of The Java Class Libraries, the supplement contains descriptions of the new pacakges and classes introduced in the Javao 2 Platform, Standard Edition, version 1.2. It also provides details on how the classes and methods have changed from JDKo 1.1. Together, this supplement and The Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1, provide a complete reference to the following packages: java.io, java.lang, java.lang.ref, java.lang.reflect, java.math, java.net, java.text, java.util, java.util.jar, and java.util.zip. The extensive class and member descriptions contain details crucial for developing robust and professional applets and applications. Each description is supplemented by an example that demonstrates the class or member in a relevant context. Numerous examples facilitate learning-by-example and provide useful code for your projects. The information is presented in an easy-to-use, dictionary-like format.Each class description includes: *a class hierarchy diagram showing its connection to related classes *a detailed overview describing its purpose and key concepts *a convenient member summary that briefly describes each member and arranges the members into related groups *an example demonstrating the class in a "real-world" context *comprehensive descriptions and an example for each member 0201485524B04062001

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Just as the Java 2 specification expands upon the solid foundation created by earlier versions of the Java language, The Java Class Libraries: Supplement for the Java 2 Platform builds on the base established by the highly respected The Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1. This supplement covers all that's new and changed in the java.io, java.lang, java.lang.reflect, java.math, java.net, java.text, java.util, and java.util.zip packages, as well as the new java.util.jar and java.lang.ref packages in their entirety. Since this supplement covers only the new and modified material, you'll need to keep the older volume (whose contents are indexed in the Supplement for the Java 2 Platform, by the way) on hand.

The Supplement for the Java 2 Platform takes the form of a series of entries, each detailing the characteristics of a single class. Entries include a full statement of the class's inheritance, a full list of the members of the class (with flags next to those members that are new or have changed since Java 1.1), and detailed subentries on the flagged members. Members' subentries include a brief statement of the member's purpose and syntax, along with a prose description of the member's behavior. All members' subentries also include either an illustrative example or a reference to one that appears with another member. --David Wall

From the Inside Flap

How to Use This Book

This book is a companion to The Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume

1. It contains descriptions of the new packages and classes in the Java™

2 Platform, Standard Edition, Version 1.2. It also provides details of how the

classes and methods have changed from the Java™ Developement Kit (JDK™) Version

1.1 to Version 1.2. It is important to understand that some of the material

in this book is not complete and refers to material in The Java Class Libraries,

Second Edition, Volume 1.

Like The Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1. this book

is intended as a reference rather than a tutorial. Its format is similar to

a dictionary’s in that it is designed to optimize the time it takes for you

to look up information about a class or class member. For a tutorial-style presentation

of the class libraries, see The Java™ Tutorial by Mary Campione and Kathy

Walrath. The Java™ Class Libraries does not explain any part of the Java

language. There are several books you can use to learn the language. These include

The Java™ Programming Language, by Ken Arnold and James Gosling, and

The Java™ Language Specification, by James Gosling, Bill Joy, and Guy

Steele.

Following is an overview of this book. Package Overviews

This part briefly describes each package and all of the classes in it. Also

included are diagrams that show the inheritance hierarchy of the classes that

appear in a package.

Each overview contains not only a general description about the package, but

also descriptions of the changes in the package for Version 1.2. Each class

that has been introduced in Version 1.2 is labeled with a

tag. Each class that has been changed for Version 1.2 is labeled with a

tag. Alphabetical Reference of Classes

This part covers the alphabetical listing of the classes from the following

packages:

java.io

java

java.lang

java.text

java.lang.ref

java.util

java.lang.reflect

java.util.jar

java.math

java.util.zip

Only those classes that have been changed or added in Version 1.2 are included.

Moreover, within the changed classes, only those members that have been changed

or added are included. See the Table of Contents for a list of the classes and

members in this book. For information about the classes that are changed, see

The Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1.

Like The Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1, the classes

are ordered alphabetically without regard to package name or version.

Each class is described in its own chapter. Each chapter contains a picture

of the class hierarchy, a class description, a “Changes for Version 1.2” section

for classes that have changed, a class example, a member summary, and descriptions

for each member that is changed or new in Version 1.2. Chapters for classes

that have changed (as opposed to those that were introduced in Version 1.2)

have the label CHANGES FOR VERSION 1.2 in their footer. Class Hierarchy Diagram

Each chapter starts with a class diagram. The class diagram shows all of the

ancestors of the class, its siblings, its immediate descendents, and any interfaces

that the class implements. In these diagrams, if a package name precedes a class

or interface name, the class or interface is not in the same package as the

current class.

In the diagrams, the different kinds of Java entities are distinguished visually

as follows:

The interface: A rounded rectangle

The class: A rectangle

The abstract class: A rectangle with an empty dot

The final class: A rectangle with a black dot

Classes with subclasses: A rectangle with a small black triangle in the

lower-right corner

Most of these elements are shown in Figure i. The class or interface being

described in the current chapter is shaded grey. A solid line represents extends,

while a dotted line represents implements.

Class Description

In the class description, we describe all of the properties of the class. For

example, the properties of the Graphics class include the current

color, font, paint mode, origin, and clipping area. Describing in one place

all of a class's available properties and how the properties behave makes learning

all of the capabilities of a class much easier than if the property descriptions

were scattered throughout the member descriptions.

Any terminology used in the member descriptions is introduced and described

in the class descriptions. If you find that the member description lacks detail,

go to the class description for more information.

If the class is newly introduced in Version 1.2, its class description is

complete. If the class is one that is changed in Version 1.2, the class description

is only a summary of the class; the complete class description is in The

Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1. Changes for Version 1.2

If the class is one that is changed in Version 1.2, the chapter contains a

“Changes for Version 1.2” section that describes the changes, including the

new methods that have been added and how existing methods have changed. Class Example

Most of the chapters for new classes have a class example that illustrates

how to use the class. Some of the chapters for the changed classes have a class

example. For some of the changed classes, the changes are so minor that the

class example in The Java Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1 is

still relevant. Member Summary

The member summary is intended to help the reader quickly grasp the key points

of the class. It groups the members of the class into categories that are specific

to that class. For example, in the List class the Selection Methods category

lists all methods having to do with selections. It is meant to be a quick summary

of the class’s members, so it does not contain any syntax information other

than the name of the member.

The member summary for both changed and new classes is complete. In a changed

class, changed members are labeled with a

tag, while new members are labeled with a

tag. Only those members with one of these two tags are documented in the chapter.

The documentation for unlabeled members in is The Java Class Libraries, Second

Edition, Volume 1.

For example, following is the member summary for ZipInputStream.

In Version 1.2, ZipInputStream has one new member, createZipEntry(),

and one changed member, available(). The chapter for ZipInputStream

contains member descriptions for createZipEntry() and available().

All other members of ZipInputStream are described in The Java

Class Libraries, Second Edition, Volume 1. Member Descriptions

The member descriptions appear in alphabetical order within a class chapter

regardless of what kind of method or field they are. This is done to make locating

a member proceed as fast as possible.

Overloaded methods are placed together in one member description because they

share very similar functionality. The different overloaded forms are typically

provided as a convenience for the programmer when specifying parameters. For

instance, some overloads eliminate parameters by providing common defaults.

To describe overloads with missing parameters, we use a phrase of the form “if

the parameter p is not specified, it defaults to the value 3.14.”

Other overloads take different representations of a value. For example, one

overload could take a particular parameter as an integer, while another could

take the same parameter as a string containing an integer.

In a changed class, each member heading is labeled with either a

or a tag.

indicates a member whose behavior has changed in Version 1.2. The changes might

include an addition of an overloaded form, deprecation, or any other change

in the semantics of the member.

indicates that the member was introduced in Version 1.2. Following are examples

of each tag.

Each member description contains some or all of the following fields:

PURPOSE

A brief description of the purpose of this member

SYNTAX

The syntactic declaration of this member

DESCRIPTION

A full description of this member

PARAMETERS

The parameters accepted by this member, if any, listed in alphabetical

order

RETURNS

The value and its range returned by this member, if any

EXCEPTIONS

The exceptions and errors thrown by this member, if any, listed in alphabetical

order

SEE ALSO

Other related classes or members, if any, listed in alphabetical order

OVERRIDES

The method that this member overrides, if any

EXAMPLE

A code example that illustrates how this member is used. This is sometimes

a reference to an example that illustrates the use of this method in another

member example or class example.

If an overloaded form has been added to an existing member, the overloaded

form has a SINCE 1.2 tag. For example, in Version

1.1 the String class has a form of compareTo() that

accepts a String parameter. In Version 1.2, the

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Product Details

• Paperback: 1200 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall; 1 edition (May 28, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201485524
• ISBN-13: 978-0201485523
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #944,443 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My desert island book series, June 23, 2000

By 

JavaBarista (Encinitas, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Java(TM) Class Libraries: Supplement for the Java(TM) 2 Platform, v1.2; Parts A and B(Volume 1, Standard Edition) (Paperback)

If you could design your own Java reference series, what would you include? How about:

- An plain English explanation of each class and method.
- Sample code for every class and method.
- Intelligent organization that enables you to find a given class or method quickly.
- A comprehensive, well-organized index that thinks like you do.

This summarizes the content of this book and the other two in the series and explains why they are the three books I wouldn't dream of programming in Java without. (I've been a professional Java developer since 1996.) Buy the book and make your life easier.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just what I was looking for -- great reference, January 18, 2000

By 

"patinnj" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Java(TM) Class Libraries: Supplement for the Java(TM) 2 Platform, v1.2; Parts A and B(Volume 1, Standard Edition) (Paperback)

As a beginning Java Programmer, I was looking for a reference for all the java packages. This book contains all objects which changed since the JDK 1.1. I continue to use it daily. The one dissapointment I had, was my own missunderstanding of the nature of the book. As the title implies this is a supplement, if you want a complete reference you must buy the vol 1 and 2 of the java reference. The index in this book will refer you to the other volumns for an object which did not change in 1.2. The organization is well thought out and the coding examples are helpful to me as a beginner. The completeness and index make this a superb reference manual.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Why soft cover?, October 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Java(TM) Class Libraries: Supplement for the Java(TM) 2 Platform, v1.2; Parts A and B(Volume 1, Standard Edition) (Paperback)

This is as good as the others in the series, but I don't know why they chose to change to soft cover. It probably won't stand up to the abuse the other two have taken, (although for some reason I find myself referencing these books much less in favor of the API... maybe there's less need as you progress on the learning curve?). Anyway, this book is also an essential part of anyone's Java library.