Java Generics and Collections

by Wadler, Philip; Naftalin, Maurice

• ISBN13: 9780596102470
• ISBN10: 059610247X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-03-01
• Publisher: Oreilly & Associates Inc

Summary

Java Generics is probably the most important feature added to the Java Language for Java 5.0. Generics not only affect the new code programmers write, but potentially all of their existing code as well. The beauty of generics is that more problems will be caught during development. The downside is their complexity. This book, written by one of the designers of gnerics, is a thorough explanation of how to use generics, and particularly, the effect this facility has on the way programmers use collections. Generics and collections allow for greater reuse of source code. While the benefits are great, it takes extra effort for developers to generify code. Java Generics and Collections explains why the effort is well worth the gains and teaches Java developers how to use a generic library, how to write a generic library and specify collection types, and how to generify an existing library of legacy code. Readers will find helpful hints and exercises that show them how to avoid the pitfalls of generics and speed up their Java development process.