Java 6 New Features

Description

For seasoned Java programmers who want to stay up to date on the latest Java tools, this guide discusses the new features of Java 6 Mustang. This handbook to the new version includes updated information on Web services, a JavaScript engine that allows access to information in a Java program, JDBC 4.0, JAXB 2.0, XML digital signature APIs, more sophisticated Swing components, and improvements in Java 2D that includes a GIF image writer.

 

JavaTM SE 6, code-named Mustang, brings to the table many new technologies, including the reference implementations for eleven JSRs. The new features and enhancements can be grouped into these areas:

 

• XML digital signatures
• Streaming API for XML
• JDBC 4.0
• Web-Services Metadata
• Java Compiler API
• Java Class File Specification Update
• Java Architecture for XML Binding 2.0
• Scripting for the Java Platform
• Java API for XML-Based Web Services 2.0
• Common Annotations
• Pluggable Annotation-Processing API
• Java Management Extensions
• Swing
• Abstract Window Toolkit
• Networking
• Internationalization

Obviously, there is a lot to learn and the learning curve could be steep especially if you have no experience with these technologies. Fortunately, this book has been designed as a tutorial. Not only does it explain the new stuff in plain English, it also provides an introduction on each of the new technologies, making learning them fun. For instance, If you’ve never done Drag and Drop (DnD) in Swing before, don’t worry. There is a comprehensive introduction on this cool technology before a discussion of JavaTM 6 DnD. If you’re new to the Java Management Extensions (JMX) API, fear not. This book provides a tutorial on JMX before detailing the new features in it

Admittedly, many new features in JavaTM SE 6 rely on the language updates in JavaTM 5, making JavaTM 5 a prerequisite for understanding Mustang. The author of this book realized it and had provided notes and three appendixes on the most important JavaTM 5 features. With this book, you can skip JavaTM 5 and still get up to date with JavaTM 6