Java Tutorial for Complete Beginners

Learn to program using the Java programming language

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Lectures 75
Length 16 hours
Skill Level All Levels
Languages English, captions
Includes Lifetime access
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Available on iOS and Android
Certificate of Completion

About This Course

Published 9/2012 English Closed captions available

Course Description

Learn to program in the Java programming language. This course assumes no prior programming knowledge, just a desire to learn to program.

What are the requirements?

Basic fluency with computers

What am I going to get from this course?

Learn to program in Java

Who is the target audience?

Anyone who wants to learn Java

Curriculum

Section 1: Introduction
	Lecture 1	Introduction and Installation	09:39
	Introducing the Java for Complete Beginners course, and what you need to install in order to get started. Don't worry too much about what this stuff we're installing actually does --- we'll look at that next time.
	Lecture 2	What Java Is and How It Works	12:38
	In this tutorial we'll talk about such things as the Java Virtual Machine and the Java Development Kit; we'll discuss what a programming language is exactly, and how you basically make your computer do stuff.
	Lecture 3	Getting a Job and What to Study After Completing Basic Java	18:59
	What should you do when you've completed a basic Java course, and can you get a job with Java? In this video I'll explain a bit about some of the major areas of advanced Java, the process of finding a job and what you might want to study next, once you've completed basic Java.
	Lecture 4	How To Get The Most Out Of This Course	09:25
	Some ideas about how best to learn Java and how to work through this course.
Section 2: Programming Core Java
	Lecture 5	A Hello World Program	04:46
	Create a simple Java program with Eclipse.
	Lecture 6	Using Variables	07:53
	Variables are one of the most basic essential building blocks of computer programs. We'll take a look at Java's basic types of variables here.
	Lecture 7	Strings: Working With Text	09:21
	The String class allows you to work with text in Java.
	Lecture 8	While Loops	07:15
	In this tutorial we'll look at how to create loops in your code so that you can execute the same lines of code repeatedly.
	Lecture 9	For Loops	09:28
	"For" loops allow you to control exactly how many times your loop executes.
	Lecture 10	"If"	12:26
	Lecture 11	Getting User Input	08:52
	A tutorial on how to get user input in your program using the Scanner class.
	Lecture 12	Do ... While	08:05
	How to use do...while loops in Java, plus variable scope and multi-line comments. I take a look at a solution to a commonly-assigned beginner's exercise in Java.
	Lecture 13	Switch	06:52
	The switch statement lets you choose between multiple alternatives.
	Lecture 14	Arrays	09:46
	How to use arrays in Java; creating, accessing and iterating through arrays. Also, a look at the difference between a value and a reference.
	Lecture 15	Arrays of Strings	08:39
	A tutorial on arrays of Strings in Java, plus another way to iterate through an array, and more stuff on the difference between values and references.
	Lecture 16	Multi-Dimensional Arrays	13:06
	How to work with multi-dimensional arrays in Java and info on how multi-dimensional arrays actually work, plus some tips on how to remember which index is which.
	Lecture 17	Classes and Objects	11:44
	It's finally time to take a look at classes and objects, the main building blocks of OO (Object Oriented) programming.
	Lecture 18	Methods	11:05
	Classes (and objects) can contain data and subroutines, the latter being referred to as "methods". We'll look at methods here. Note: there's a little error right at the end here -- I copied person1.sayHello() but didn't change it to person2 ..
	Lecture 19	Getters and Return Values	10:31
	In this tutorial we'll look at returning values from methods, including the standard "get method", "getter" or "accessor" form.
	Lecture 20	Method Parameters	15:00
	We've already covered returning values from methods; now we'll take a look at passing values to methods. These two techniques allow you, among other things, to create methods that process one piece of data into another ...
	Lecture 21	Setters and "this"	10:58
	Setters (or set methods, or, if you have come from the 1970s in a time machine, "mutators"), allow you to change the data in your objects. We'll also take a look here at the "this" keyword.
	Lecture 22	Constructors	10:18
	Constructors are a special kind of method that gets run automatically when you create an object from a class (or in the lingo, "instantiate" an object).
	Lecture 23	Static (and Final)	19:46
	A tutorial on the static keyword in Java. We'll also take a look at "final".
	Lecture 24	String Builder and String Formatting	19:43
	It's time to take a closer look at the important topic of formatting and combining strings ....
	Lecture 25	The toString Method	11:06
	toString() is a method of the Object class, which is the ultimate parent of all objects in Java. By over-riding it, you can implement a way to create a string representation of your object.
	Lecture 26	Inheritance	14:09
	Inheritance is one of the basic building blocks of OO programs. And yes, believe it or not, it is actually used in the real world -- constantly -- but perhaps most often when working with elaborate external APIs, such as Swing or servlets.
	Lecture 27	Packages	14:03
	Packages allow you to organise your Java code, in a hierarchical structure exactly like the folder structure on your computer.
	Lecture 28	Interfaces	19:15
	Interfaces are a vital tool in Java programming. At first you may be tempted to suspect that people only use them to show off their Java skills; but once you understand fully what they do, you won't want to do without them. Trust me on this one ...
	Lecture 29	Public, Private, Protected	19:57
	Public, private and protected are Java keywords that allow you to implement "encapsulation" -- hiding away the internal mechanism of your classes, while exposing only certain selected methods the rest of your program.
	Lecture 30	Polymorphism	10:04
	Polymorphism means being able to use a child class wherever a parent class is expected. For example, if you want to use a class of type Animal, you can always use a class of type Dog instead (if Dog extends Animal).
	Lecture 31	Encapsulation and the API Docs	11:17
	Encapsulation is the art of hiding away the workings of a class and only exposing a public API. We'll also take a look at how to read the API docs.
	Lecture 32	Casting Numerical Values	11:16
	Let's take a look at how to change one kind of number into another.
	Lecture 33	Upcasting and Downcasting	13:54
	Upcasting and downcasting really test your understanding of Java references and objects. If you can understand this stuff (and yes, it's also very useful aside from testing your understanding), then you've definitely got the aptitude to make a great programmer. And if you CAN'T understand it, then stick at it :)
	Lecture 34	Using Generics	12:40
	Generics allow you to use and create classes that work with objects, the type of which you can specify when you use "new".
	Lecture 35	Generics and Wildcards	17:50
	If you want to pass templated objects to methods, you might want to make use of some interesting syntax ....
	Lecture 36	Anonymous Classes	08:56
	Anonymous classes look a bit weird at first, but they can really help to streamline your code.
	Lecture 37	Reading Files Using Scanner	12:55
	The easiest way to read a text file is by using the Scanner class. We'll take a look at Scanner in this tutorial. Scanner basically just parses an input stream (a sequence of bytes, in other words) into lines or tokens, but it will open a file for you too if you ask it the right way.
	Lecture 38	Handling Exceptions	16:23
	It's finally time to start looking at exceptions .... A major component of the Java language, and one that you're bound to run across in any sizeable program. Here we'll look at the two ways of handling exceptions and how they work.
	Lecture 39	Multiple Exceptions	12:11
	You can throw more than one possible type of exception from a method, and you can catch multiple exceptions in your try-catch block We'll look at the possibilities here, and also take a look at a common interview/exam question.
	Lecture 40	Runtime vs. Checked Exceptions	08:49
	So far we've looked at checked exceptions; the kinds of exception that you are forced to handle. But there are also unchecked (runtime) exceptions. These are exceptions that you can handle if you want to, but you're not forced to. Knowing about the two main kinds of exception is considered an important test of knowledge in Java.
	Lecture 41	Abstract Classes	12:58
	Abstract classes allow you to define the parent class of a new hierarchy without having to worry about the user actually instantiating the parent. For instance you could create an "Animal" class just to act as the basis for "Dog", "Cat, "Sheep" and so on, even defining some functionality in "Animal", but at the same time preventing the user of your hierarchy from trying to create an "Animal" object (which after all wouldn't make much sense -- you never encounter an abstract "animal" in the real world; only particular kinds of animals).
	Lecture 42	Reading Files With File Reader	17:26
	To really get serious about reading files in Java, you need to get used to stacking objects inside each other like Russian dolls. Although the code we'll examine here is complex, in the next tutorial we'll discover a Java 7 language feature that can simplify it a lot. It's also a very flexible structure for reading files, since you can read different kinds of files by changing a class or two.
	Lecture 43	Try-With-Resources	11:12
	The Java 7 Try-With-Resources syntax can massively simplify your file reading/writing code.
	Lecture 44	Creating and Writing Text Files	06:20
	A tutorial on writing text files. Which is very similar to reading text files.
	Lecture 45	The Equals Method	17:21
	A tutorial on how to implement the .equals method for your own classes.
	Lecture 46	Inner Classes	16:33
	Classes can be declared almost anywhere in Java. In particular, it's often very useful to declare either static or non-static classes within other classes. http://www.caveofprogramming.com/java/inner-classes/
	Lecture 47	Enum Types: Basic and Advanced Usage	19:20
	The enum keyword lets you create constants that belong to a fixed set of values (think colours, animals, etc). In the first half of this video we'll look at basic usage and why we need enum, then we'll move on to more advanced usage. Source code: http://www.caveofprogramming.com/java/enum/
	Lecture 48	Recursion: A Useful Trick Up Your Sleeve	17:26
	Recursion is a programming technique that allows you to solve certain kinds of problems very elegantly. It involves calling a method from itself. Crazy! Source code: http://www.caveofprogramming.com/java/recursion/
	Lecture 49	Serialization: Saving Objects to Files	21:17
	Serialization is the process of turning objects into a stream of binary data; by serializing objects, you can store them in a file and restore them later from the same file, implementing saving and loading in your application.
	Lecture 50	Serializing Arrays	14:42
	We can serialize entire arrays (or ArrayLists) just as easily as single objects. I'll also show you a good trick for serializing multiple objects individually in this tutorial, plus we'll talk a bit about type erasure.
	Lecture 51	The Transient Keyword and More Serialization	16:14
	To finish off the stuff about serialization, we'll take a look at the transient keyword, plus a few things that might catch you out.
	Lecture 52	Passing by Value	21:30
	Java only supports one method of passing values to methods, unlike, e.g. C++. We'll take a look at exactly how argument passing works in this tutorial (note: source code attached to this lecture; for other lectures, see the source attached to the final lecture).
Section 3: The Java Collections Framework
	Lecture 53	ArrayList: Arrays the Easy Way	09:58
	The ArrayList class takes the work out of using arrays, by providing you with a resizeable array object.
	Lecture 54	Linked Lists	13:56
	If you want to add items efficiently to somewhere in a list other than the beginning or end, you need a linked list. IMPORTANT NOTE: I had misunderstood something when making this video, as pointed out to me by "kidbabic" on YouTube among others. If you add or insert something to a LinkedList by specifying an index, the list has to iterate over all items in itself up to that point in order to find the insertion/deletion point. So adding or removing to LinkedList is only faster if you use an iterator, which you have ready pointing at the correct point. See the tutorial on iterators later on for more info.
	Lecture 55	HashMap: Retrieving Objects via a Key	09:57
	Maps let you store key-value pairs, so that for example you can retrieve objects via an ID. HashMap is the most lightweight in terms of memory, and the one you'll use the most often.
	Lecture 56	Sorted Maps	12:02
	If you want your map keys to be sorted, you can use special kinds of maps. A lot of what we'll cover here also applies to sets, which we'll look at shortly.
	Lecture 57	Sets	15:54
	Used less often than lists or maps, sets are nevertheless great for creating collections of things that are unique --- in other words, for removing duplicates. It's also very quick to check whether a value exists in a set, whereas checking for something in a list can take a long time in computer terms.
	Lecture 58	Using Custom Objects in Sets and as Keys in Maps	11:20
	If you want to use objects of your own classes in sets, or you want to use them as the keys in maps, you need to do a couple of little things ....
	Lecture 59	Sorting Lists	21:29
	A common requirement for a list is to sort it in some kind of order. Fortunately Java makes sorting very easy.
	Lecture 60	Natural Ordering	19:35
	How will your objects be sorted, if you sort them somehow? The sort order often depends on something called the natural order, and you can define custom natural orders for your own classes to sort them in the order you want.
	Lecture 61	Queues	18:17
	Queues are used less often than lists, sets and maps, but they're still very useful; especially if you're doing any multi-threading.
	Lecture 62	Using Iterators	09:25
	Iterators are the thing that enable you to get each element in a collection in sequence. We'll look at using them in this tutorial, then next time we'll move on to implementing our own.
	Lecture 63	Implementing Iterable	18:55
	If you implement Iterable, you'll be able to iterate over your own custom collection.
	Lecture 64	Deciding Which Collection to Use	14:24
	It's time for a review of how to choose which of the main Collection classes and types to use. In this tutorial we'll go over some stuff we learned earlier and bring it all together.
	Lecture 65	Complex Data Structures	21:52
	You can use "nested" Collections objects to represent all kinds of complicated data structures in Java; maps of lists of sets of maps, etc, etc. We'll take a look at a simple example here, inspired by a university coursework question.
Section 4: Appendix
	Lecture 66	Eclipse Shortcuts	13:12
	My favourite Eclipse shortcuts.
	Lecture 67	Getting a Job Extended Version: What you need, a strategy for finding work, and my story.	30:30
	An extended video detailing my strategy for finding a job as a software developer, plus stuff about the question of whether you need experience or a degree, what you can do to increase your chances and my own personal story of how I got into software development.
	Lecture 68	Ten Tips for Improving Your Coding	05:48
	Ten tips that every programmer should know (and hopefully the professionals already do!). These tips WILL, if followed, hugely increase your productivity.
	Lecture 69	Debugging in Eclipse	15:36
	In this tutorial we'll take a look at using the Eclipse debugger. Debugging is useful for when your program compiles and runs but doesn't do what you expect, and you're having a hard time figuring out why. Debugging allows you to execute the program line by line and to see what values each variable in your program have at each step.
Section 5: What's New In Java 8?
	Lecture 70	Lambda Expressions	31:55
	A tutorial on the most important new feature in JDK 8. Note, source code attached to this lecture. Source code for most other lectures is attached to the final lecture in this course.
Section 6: Tests
	Lecture 71	Basic Java Programming: Test Your Knowledge	00:25
Section 7: More ...
	Lecture 72	Recommended Books	00:24
	Lecture 73	Still to come ...	00:09
Section 8: Source Code
	Lecture 74	Source Code	00:02
Section 9: Discounts
	Lecture 75	Free C++ and 50% Off All My Courses	00:47

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Instructor Biography

John Purcell, Software Development Trainer

After working as a software developer and contractor for over 14 years for a whole bunch of companies including CSC, Proquest, SPSS and AT&T in the UK and Netherlands, I decided to work full-time as a private software trainer. I now live in the beautiful city of Budapest, Hungary, from where I run the website Cave of Programming.