Embedding program code in a web page creates special security requirements. As an Internet user accessing a page with embedded Java code, you need to be confident that it will not do anything that might interfere with the operation of your computer, or damage the data you have on your system. This implies that execution of the embedded code must be controlled in such a way that it will prevent accidental damage to your computer environment, as well as ensure that any Java code that was created with malicious intent is effectively inhibited. Java implicitly incorporates measures to minimize the possibility of such occurrences arising with a Java applet.
Java also allows you to write large-scale application programs that you can run unchanged on any computer with an operating system environment in which the language is supported. This applies to the majority of computers in use today. You can even write programs that will work both as ordinary applications and as applets.
Java has matured immensely in recent years, particularly with the introduction of Java 2. The breadth of function provided by the standard core Java has grown incredibly. Java provides you with comprehensive facilities for building application with an interactive GUI, extensive image processing and graphics programming facilities, as well as support for accessing relational databases and communicating with remote computers over a network. Release 1.4 of Java added a very important additional capability, the ability to read and write XML. Just about any kind of application can now be programmed effectively in Java, with the implicit plus of complete portability.
The most important characteristic of Java is that it was designed from the outset to be machine independent. Java programs can run unchanged on any operating system that supports Java. Of course there is still the slim possibility of the odd glitch as you are ultimately dependent on the implementation of Java on any particular machine, but Java programs are intrinsically more portable than programs written in other languages. An application written in Java will only require a single set of sourcecode, regardless of the number of different computer platforms on which it is run. In any other programming language, the application will frequently require the sourcecode to be tailored to accommodate different computer environments, particularly if there is an extensive graphical user interface involved. Java offers substantial savings in time and resources in developing, supporting, and maintaining major applications on several different hardware platforms and operating systems.
Possibly the next most important characteristic of Java is that it is object oriented. The object-oriented approach to programming is also an implicit feature of all Java programs, so we will be looking at what this implies later in this chapter. Object-oriented programs are easier to understand, and less time-consuming to maintain and extend than programs that have been written without the benefit of using objects.
Not only is Java object oriented, but it also manages to avoid many of the difficulties and complications that are inherent in some other object-oriented languages, making it easy to learn and very straightforward to use. It lacks the traps and 'gotchas' that arise in some other programming languages. This makes the learning cycle shorter and you need less real-world coding experience to gain competence and confidence. It also makes Java code easier to test.
Java has a built-in ability to support national character sets. You can write Java programs as easily for Greece or Japan, as you can for English speaking countries always assuming you are familiar with the national languages involved, of course. You can even build programs from the outset to support several different national languages with automatic adaptation to the environment in which the code executes.
