Compendium Article 9: A Newbie's Introduction to Object-Oriented Programming, Java, and tutorial links to keep you motivated

 

        Hello fellow Java noobs! As my journey continues further into the world computing and specifically programming, we’ve now arrived at Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) and Java. The names alone sound intimidating, but don’t worry! I'm here to explain what Ive learn to your ------from one beginner to another.

Getting Started

1.      Go to the Oracle website or OpenJDK to get the Java Development Kit (JDK).

2.      Pick the JDK version that matches your computer (Windows, macOS, Linux) and download it.

3.      Open the downloaded file and follow the on-screen setup instructions.

4.      To check if Java is installed, type java -version in your command prompt or terminal. If you see a version number, you're all set!

5.      For writing Java code, you'll need an IDE (a program where you’ll write the code). Good options for beginners include Eclipse, NetBeans, Visual Studio Code, and IntelliJ IDEA.

6.      After doing some Google research I chose IntelliJ IDEA because it's popular and user-friendly for beginners. Just download and install it like any regular program.

7.      IntelliJ IDEA should also install smoothly. Make sure it's set to recognize .java files.

8.      And that's it! You're ready to start coding in Java

 

Understanding Object-Oriented Programming (OOP)

What is Object-Oriented Programming? Simply put, it is a programming paradigm that’s quite different from traditional procedural programming. It’s like building with Lego blocks (objects) rather than molding a sculpture from a lump of clay (procedural programming). Procedural programming breaks a program into functions that use variables. It's easy at first, but with growth, it can become messy, leading to repeated and tangled code that's hard to manage (also known as Spaghetti coding). OOP organizes code into objects, combining variables (properties) and functions (methods) together. This method, like grouping car features and actions into a car object, avoids the mess of procedural code and keeps things organized. Common ones include Java, C#, PHP, Python, C++, etc.

 

OOP Concepts

Learning a new programming language comes with its own set of jargon which can be a lot to take in as a beginner. It's normal to feel swamped by all the new terms in tutorials and videos. To make things easier, I've broken down some of these terms for you and included links to resources that explain them clearly from tutors that really delivered the information in a humorous, yet concise way. If you've already tried to get a simple "hello world" program running in Java already like I did, I bet it felt like overkill compared to Python, right? With all the "public static void" stuff, it's easy to get lost. Luckily, John breaks it down with some humor in the first video tutorial I've linked below. Beginners in coding will certainly have a good laugh! 'Coding with John’ has helped me understand a lot of things in four videos and makes humor of getting started with Java and comparing it to Python. He delivers very short videos and explains “Why it's hard”. He says that if you think Java's tough to crack, you're not alone. That it feels like needing a whole kitchen just to make a PB&J. In Java, a simple 'Hello World' requires a class, a main method, and a print statement—definitely more than Python's one-liner. Java’s like an iceberg; what you see is just the tip. Variables and if-statements are just the start. Then comes the avalanche—inheritance, polymorphism, collections, and the list goes on. As he delivers information, he keeps it simple for beginners, such as stating that “a Class is just a fancy name for a Java file”. For the beginner concepts, I watched ‘Programming with Mosh’ where he explained this in 7 minutes with animation on a YouTube tutorial. The four pillars of OOP are encapsulation, abstraction, inheritance, and polymorphism.

1.      Objects & Classes: In the real world, an object is anything tangible like a car or a book. In OOP, objects are similar but digital. They contain data and ways to interact with that data. These are instances of classes with state (attributes) and behavior (methods). Classes are like blueprints for these objects, defining what they will be and what they can do.

 

2.      Encapsulation: Grouping related variables and functions (methods) together in objects to reduce complexity. This allows for reusing objects in different parts of a program or across various programs.

 

3.      Abstraction: Hiding the details and showing only the essentials. It simplifies the user experience and isolates the impact of changes in the code, which also reduces complexity.

 

4.      Inheritance: Eliminating redundant code by enabling new objects to take on properties and behaviors of existing objects.

 

5.      Polymorphism: Refactoring and simplifying code by allowing methods to behave differently based on the object, eliminating the need for ugly switch-case statements.

The first three links to check out to get you started are included below, as are further videos with John:

1.      Learn Java in One Video - 15-minute Crash Course – Coding with John https://youtu.be/drQK8ciCAjY?si=Y4mua1LzAew_DAMd

2.      Object-oriented Programming in 7 minutes | Mosh https://youtu.be/pTB0EiLXUC8?si=wGjU6uUwzW5SFFdR

3.      IntelliJ IDEA Full Course Amigoscode IntelliJ IDEA Full Course https://youtu.be/yefmcX57Eyg?si=Z9p_YDZGEx1fFTZw

References

P. W. M. (2018, March 30). Object-oriented Programming in 7 minutes | Mosh. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTB0EiLXUC8

C. W. J. (2021, August 11). Learn Java in One Video - 15-minute Crash Course. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drQK8ciCAjY

A. (2019, September 22). IntelliJ IDEA Full Course. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yefmcX57Eyg