I published the fourth edition of Java Network Programming. In the first edition in 1996 I wrote about the sort of dynamic, distributed network applications I thought Java would make possible. One of the most exciting parts of writing subsequent editions has been seeing virtually all of the applications I foretold come to pass. Java has gone from being the excessively hyped newcomer that couldn’t do very much of practical use to the gray-haired incumbent to which new languages are compared.
This book has come a long way, too. The fourth edition focuses even more heavily on HTTP and REST. HTTP has gone from being one of many network protocols to almost the network protocol. It is often the protocol on which other protocols are built, forming its own layer in the network stack.
There have been lots of other small changes and updates throughout the java.net and supporting packages in Java 6, 7, and 8, and these are covered here as well. New classes addressed in this edition include CookieManager, CookiePolicy, CookieStore, HttpCookie, SwingWorker, Executor, ExecutorService, AsynchronousSocketChannel, AsynchronousServerSocketChannel, and more. Many other methods have been added to existing classes in the last three releases of Java, and these are discussed in the relevant chapters. I’ve also rewritten large parts of the book to reflect the ever-changing fashions in Java programming in general and network programming in particular.
Finally, I tightened up, compressed, and improved the text substantially. This edition is several hundred pages shorter than the last two. I actually pulled the last chapter on JavaMail out into a completely separate book that can stand on its own. Otherwise I doubt anyone will notice anything missing in this edition. I shrunk example code, combined sections, removed obsolete technology, and generally took the time to say everything as concisely and clearly as I could manage. This is the strongest edition yet, and I hope it’s going to last another 10 years.
I published the fourth edition of Java Network Programming. In the first edition in 1996 I wrote about the sort of dynamic, distributed network applications I thought Java would make possible. One of the most exciting parts of writing subsequent editions has been seeing virtually all of the applications I foretold come to pass. Java has gone from being the excessively hyped newcomer that couldn’t do very much of practical use to the gray-haired incumbent to which new languages are compared.
This book has come a long way, too. The fourth edition focuses even more heavily on HTTP and REST. HTTP has gone from being one of many network protocols to almost the network protocol. It is often the protocol on which other protocols are built, forming its own layer in the network stack.
There have been lots of other small changes and updates throughout the java.net and supporting packages in Java 6, 7, and 8, and these are covered here as well. New classes addressed in this edition include CookieManager, CookiePolicy, CookieStore, HttpCookie, SwingWorker, Executor, ExecutorService, AsynchronousSocketChannel, AsynchronousServerSocketChannel, and more. Many other methods have been added to existing classes in the last three releases of Java, and these are discussed in the relevant chapters. I’ve also rewritten large parts of the book to reflect the ever-changing fashions in Java programming in general and network programming in particular.
Finally, I tightened up, compressed, and improved the text substantially. This edition is several hundred pages shorter than the last two. I actually pulled the last chapter on JavaMail out into a completely separate book that can stand on its own. Otherwise I doubt anyone will notice anything missing in this edition. I shrunk example code, combined sections, removed obsolete technology, and generally took the time to say everything as concisely and clearly as I could manage. This is the strongest edition yet, and I hope it’s going to last another 10 years.