Essential Java Style: Patterns for Implementation - Softcover

Langr, Jeff; Lnagr, Jeff

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0130850861 ISBN 13: 9780130850867

Publisher: Prentice Hall, 1999

Synopsis

Standardizes a common Java coding style defined in terms of patterns. The patterns cover methods, messages, state, collections, classes and formatting, and streamline the development process by eliminating random coding and naming styles that complicate maintenance. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

About this title

Review

Stylebooks are nothing new to the writing trades. Each publication has one; they dictate such things as whether Bob Jones is called "Mr. Jones" or simply "Jones" on second reference. Stylebooks give a publication's writers a consistent sound and make it easier for readers to extract the information they want. Though they're not exactly the same as magazine stories, computer programs are written works too. In Essential Java Style: Patterns for Implementation, Jeff Langr holds forth on a series of Java judgment calls, explaining why he thinks certain approaches are better than others. In his defense of his strategies (patterns, to use object-orientation jargon), Langr takes into account both the human need to read the source code and the design goal of making the program execute speedily and in a resource-efficient way. The approach Langr outlines here should prove useful on large software projects, particularly those that involve multiple team members that need to quickly figure out what the others are doing.

Langr's opinion on the "instanceof" operator is a good example. Generally, he says, "instanceof" is a bad tool to use (in a manner similar to that of a switch statement) for identifying an object's class. It's a resource pig, and multiple tests can be hard to follow in code. It's better, he says, to use polymorphism to endow each of several subclasses with identically named methods, each with a different effect. This is the kind of stuff Java programmers debate all the time, but Essential Java Style makes strong cases for many stock solutions. --David Wall

Topics covered: Patterns for solving programming problems in Java, including those relating to methods, messages, problems of state, data structures, formatting, and execution tweaking.

From the Back Cover

The definitive style guide for writing readable, maintainable Java code

With Essential Java Style, developers finally have a Java style guide that offers detailed patterns for real-world implementation. Using GGD1real code, not abstract discussion, Jeff Langr brings together scores of today's best implementation solutions for the problems every Java developer faces. By standardizing these solutions, developers can build Java programs more quickly, efficiently, and reliably-and above all, make them dramatically easier to maintain.

Langr brings together the most useful ideas from many sources, notably the excellent Smalltalk patterns identified in Kent Beck's Smalltalk Best Practice Patterns (Prentice Hall, ISBN: 0-13-476904-X). The patterns in Essential Java Style cover methods, messages, state, collections, classes, and formatting. Each pattern appears on its own page, with its own name and summary box designed to show exactly which problem is being solved.

Streamline the development processes by using these patterns to eliminate random coding and naming styles that complicate maintenance, overly procedural code that can be difficult to understand, and varying techniques for common operations that are often inefficient.

Essential Java Style will be an invaluable reference for Java developers, managers, and other technical professionals throughout the entire project lifecycle by providing:

• The industry's best solutions for dozens of common operations
• Techniques for both JDK 2 and JDK 1.1
• Detailed coverage of the Java 2 Collections Framework
• Techniques for making code more understandable without extensive commenting
• Detailed patterns for real-world implementation
• Real "best-practices" code for real Java challenges
• Patterns covered include behavior, state, collections, classes, and formatting
• The ideal reference for team-based development!

Edition details

• Publisher: Prentice Hall
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0130850861
• ISBN 13: 9780130850867
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 277