Java has long since made its mark in the world of web application development, due to its highly adaptive and resourceful capabilities. Featuring object-based data manipulation and code that will work across any device or operating system without requiring multiple versions, Java offers web developers much flexibility to build web applications of any size or complexity.
At EFutures, our experience in Java web development gives us insight on why this programming language is so valuable – and we’ve elaborated on these advantages below.
But first…
The Java programming language was first born in 1991, and was formally released for use in 1995. Developed by a team of researchers at Sun Microsystems who were led by James Gosling, Java was initially built to power the cable television industry. However, Java’s multimedia capabilities rendered it more valuable for the web, which was gradually gaining popularity at the time.
Java’s versatility led to multiple versions of its software being subsequently developed, with dedicated versions released for consumer devices, embedded devices and servers. In 2010, Oracle purchased Java from Sun Microsystems, who now maintain the programming language for its continued free and open-source use.
As an object-oriented programming language, Java enables developers to deliver outcomes based on data, as opposed to logic. This makes Java highly useful for building applications that are large and complex, as several ‘objects’ can be manipulated without having to worry about functions and logic.
Additionally, OOP languages such as Java also offer polymorphism, which means that different outcomes can be sought from the same data. Again, this further qualifies Java for larger applications. Objects are also reusable, thereby giving developers the convenience they need to build and ship faster.
Java is compatible for multi-threading, which is the handling of multiple user requests at the same time – without multiplying code. In other words, the same code can be used to accommodate requests from multiple users, or multiple requests from the same user. Multi-threading not only helps save time and resources, but also improves application performance, thereby making Java highly useful as a programming language.
Java functions on the principle of ‘Write Once, Run Anywhere’, which means that developers need only build one code version to run across any device or operating system. Thanks to the Java Runtime Environment (JRE), code written in Java is first converted to Bytecode, which is then run through the JRE in order to convert it into a format that is readable by the host computer.
As a result, developers can forgo having to worry about individual compilers with different devices and operating systems, as the JRE will do what’s necessary to render it readable for the host computer.
Java offers code that is more accurate during runtime, as its type checking needs to be done well beforehand. This ensures any incorrect data types are discovered well before runtime, so they can be rectified accordingly. The same also applies to determining and assigning data types; this is also done before compilation, thereby contributing to final rendering that is less prone to errors.
Although consuming more time during development and testing, Java, as a statically typed language, leads to better accuracy as data types are checked and verified before runtime. This is one of the key factors that are considered when discussing Java vs Python, so business leaders and their software development teams can decide which skill sets to adopt through the right hires.
Extensive range of frameworks and community support
As a programming language that has been highly relied upon for a significant period of time, Java offers numerous frameworks and libraries that developers can use, depending on project needs. A peer network of software developers is also always available for developers, be they novice or seasoned, to obtain assistance – with many code templates being well tried and tested multiple times for easy reuse.
Extensive community support is also a key feature of some of the best Java frameworks, which also utilise programming languages that are based off of Java – and therefore also simpler to learn and get accustomed to.
Whether Java, Python or any other programming language is right for your needs is more a matter of what your project needs to achieve, than the actual technicality of which programming language to choose.
As with any of the other factors that tie into a typical software development project, programming languages each have their strengths and weaknesses, thereby requiring your teams to first comprehensively analyse what your business really needs to achieve, before you kick-off your project, spend any budget, or hire developers.
Here, we outline how your teams, both on the software development and business sides, can reach an informed decision on whether Java, or a combination of programming languages, is ultimately suitable for your web development project.
Java web development is a vast field that consists of developers new and senior, complete with a variety of frameworks and community support. Although initially developed to serve the cable television industry, Java’s multimedia and cross-platform qualities made it highly suitable for the web, since users would access a variety of content from different devices.
Today, Java is a staple across software companies in Sri Lanka and elsewhere across the world, thanks to its highly versatile qualities and vast network of support, including code templates that have been tried and tested extensively by other developers.
As a result, Java is often a basic requirement for web development projects, even while certain areas are developed using other languages such as Python. Knowing how to combine the right set of languages, as well as determine the resources needed to make this happen, is something that businesses and their software development teams need to be aligned on – after a careful and thorough analysis.
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