Java

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Access Modifier

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Reserved words “public”, “private”, “protected” in Java. Control whether
classes and members may be accessed from any class, only this class, subclasses. Default is access from any class in the package.

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Agile (or Extreme) Development

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Methodology for developing software that emphasizes, among other
things, unit testing as part of development process.

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API (Application Programming Interface)

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The way one program uses another program. In Java, the API can be
thought of as the collection of public methods for a class or package.

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Class

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Main building block in Java. Contains members, including fields and
methods. Classes are the “blueprint” for creating objects.

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Constructor

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Special block of code used to create an instance of a class (or, if you prefer, an object whose type is the class). Used with the “new” keyword (e.g., Person p = new Person() calls the Person() constructor).

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Field

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Member in a class that holds data (e.g., name, age, etc.). Usually marked
private so that other programs cannot directly access.

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IDE (Integrated Development Environment)

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Program, like Eclipse, that provides the different tools required to develop
a software package.

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JVM (Java Virtual Machine) (also known as Java Runtime Engine or
JRE)

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The program that runs Java programs on a specific platform. Java source code is compiled into .class files. These contain the instructions used by the JVM to actually run the programs on a Windows PC, a Linux computer,
a Mac computer, etc. The JVM is written for each platform supported by Java.

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JUnit Test

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A Java class used to test individual methods in a class. Used to build test cases, e.g., when using agile development methodology.

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Method

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Member in a class that does some processing (e.g., like a subroutine or function in other languages).

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Method Argument

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Arguments are the actual values that are passed in when the method is invoked. When you invoke a method, the arguments used must match the declaration's parameters in type and order.

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Method Parameter

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Parameters refers to the list of variables in a method declaration. When you invoke a method, the arguments used must match the declaration's parameters in type and order.

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Method Signature

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A method’s name plus it’s parameter list. Method signatures are important because they allow methods to be
overloaded.

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Object

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An instance of a class.

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Overload (Method)

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To provide multiple methods with the same name but different parameters
(i.e., same name but different signatures).

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Override (Method)

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When a subclass implements a method inherited from the super class, this method is said to be overridden.

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Package

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Packages are imported into a source file to save typing the full name of
the class

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Project

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A way to organize your work. An Eclipse workspace can contain multiple projects. Each project can contain multiple packages. Each package can contain multiple classes.

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Refactor

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To improve a program without changing the way it works (i.e., its API). Example include renaming fields or variables, streamlining code, etc. Very important in agile development because of emphasis on self-documenting code.

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Reference Variable

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Variable that holds an object reference.
Points to an area on the “heap” where the object resides. Contrast with value variable.

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Static Method

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A method that belongs to the entire class instead of one instance of the
class. Invoked with <Class>.<Method>
Used for methods that don’t rely on any one instance of a class.

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Swing

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A set of standard Java packages that implement a graphical user interface
without using any “native” code.

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SWT (Standard Widget
Toolkit)

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Set of Java classes and native programs developed by Eclipse to allow Java programs to have the look and feel of native programs on each platform.

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Type

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An attribute of a variable to indicate either a primitive type (int,
boolean, etc.) or class membership. For objects, the type is the class to which it belongs. Types also include interfaces and enumerations.

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Value Variable

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Variable that holds the value of a Java primitive (e.g., integer, character, etc.). Held in the memory stack. Contrast with reference variable.