.NET Programmer Needs To Learn Java

S

scorpion53061

Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)? is there
a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?

3. I believe they use .idx files for their database structure. Can Java be
of use in reading, modifying and inserting data into these environments?

4. What is the java equivalent (if there is one) to ADO.NET?

5. Am I looking at a huge learning curve?
 
A

Andrew Thompson

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

You poor thing.. ;-)
1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

'Low', like as in 'no'? Well OK, assuming you
have a fat internet connection.

There are a slew of free tools for Java.

The VM (deployment) itself, as well as the
SDK (developement) are available free from Sun.

While that is about all you need to write,
compile and run Java, there are also quite
a number of excellent, advanced IDE's available
free for Java, none of which I like, so I'll
let others wax lyrical about them.
2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)? is there
a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?

Probably.. What's AIX, some Unix variant?

Java and Unix generally go well together,
excepting if the Ubix is Mac OS X.
3. I believe they use .idx files for their database structure. Can Java be
of use in reading, modifying and inserting data into these environments?

Java has extensive packages for D/B
access through the usual D/B access
protocols, but I have not gotten
into that, so cannot advise further.
5. Am I looking at a huge learning curve?

Probably, especially when you want to
'drag and drop' design a couple of forms
for your D/B access. That and the way
you 'hold your face' when you write to a
Java forum, "forced to conclude I need
to learn java". ...Sheesh! ;-)
 
S

scorpion53061

C'mon now I did not mean it in a bad way. :)

I started with vb.net and have found it incapable of doing anything other
than screen scaping in a AIX environment (AIX is a derivative of UNIX which
incidentally my company's main system is based on). It was my first
lanaguage and a lot of my .NET friends want me to go C# except that I dont
see how my problem would change.

My choices are currently to learn COBOL which I really dont want to do or
learn JAVA if it can run on AIX.

I look forward to hearing about the best IDE and beginning tutorials. Is
there really one that is free?

And of course I did not mean any offense. Change is hard even for
programmers.
 
A

Andrew Thompson

My choices are currently to learn COBOL

Whew! Last time I coded COBOL was back
in the '80's. Like, *way* last millennium.
..which I really dont want to do or
learn JAVA ..

<whisper>
It's 'Java', not an acronym.
..if it can run on AIX.

I look forward to hearing about the best IDE and beginning tutorials. Is
there really one that is free?

No, there are many, (considers.. shrugs)
...more than one anyway.
And of course I did not mean any offense.
;-)

..Change is hard even for
programmers.

True. All the best with it.
 
T

Thomas Fritsch

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)
A low cost way to learn? Definitely not! Learning a new language is
always expensive. And it is not becoming cheaper just by using a visual IDE.
A low cost way to compile and develop? Yes, sure! The compiler and other
command-line tools are already part of the JDK. So, for the early
learning phase you don't need a visual IDE. There are several free/cheap
IDEs: Eclipse (free) and IDEA (not expensive, and worth the price) come
to my mind.
2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)?
Yes, you can develop for example on Windows and copy the compiled things
to AIX.
is there a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?
Of course you will need the Java-Runtime for AIX. You will probably get
it from IBM.
 
W

Will Hartung

scorpion53061 said:
C'mon now I did not mean it in a bad way. :)

I started with vb.net and have found it incapable of doing anything other
than screen scaping in a AIX environment (AIX is a derivative of UNIX which
incidentally my company's main system is based on). It was my first
lanaguage and a lot of my .NET friends want me to go C# except that I dont
see how my problem would change.

My choices are currently to learn COBOL which I really dont want to do or
learn JAVA if it can run on AIX.

What exactly are you trying to do?

Are you writing client/server programs for users (desktop apps -- GUIs etc)
or server apps (like web applications or app server based applications)?

If you are writing desktop apps, is the database running on AIX? What OS are
your clients using? Are they running AIX workstations? or PC's running
Windows?

I ask this because your original post was mildly confusing (things about
..idx files), and then this one talking about Screen Scraping.

I have no love for VB or .NET, but I want to make sure that we're addressing
the real problem, it simply may not be a .NET vs Java thing at all.

So if you can better explain your environment and what you are trying to do,
I think we can give a lot better advice. I mean, seriously, COBOL may well
be the right choice here, for example.

Regards,

Will Hartung
([email protected])
 
A

Andrew Thompson

..So if you can better explain your environment and what you are trying to do,
I think we can give a lot better advice. I mean, seriously, COBOL may well
be the right choice here, for example.

COBOL was brilliant for coding printed
business reports. I would not like to
have to attempt that task using Java.
 
S

Steve Horsley

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)
For learning, there are loads of tutorials. Try this for starters:
http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/index.html
2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)? is there
a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?
I bet IBM provide a java VM for AIX. Sun don't.
3. I believe they use .idx files for their database structure. Can Java be
of use in reading, modifying and inserting data into these environments?

For database access, read up on JDBC in the tuitorial above.
4. What is the java equivalent (if there is one) to ADO.NET?

Sorry. Don't know what that is.
5. Am I looking at a huge learning curve?

Yes. But take heart. Learning java will also be working towards C# which will
keep your friends happy. C# is basically microsoft's copy/variant of java, so
they are very similar.

Steve
 
S

Steve Horsley

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

I forgot to mention - Since you're in bed with IBM, you might like to look at
Eclipse, which is IBM's free IDE. I've not looked at it myself, but I've seen
many people rave about it.

So you really need to go to IBM for both the JVM/SDK and the IDE.

Steve
 
K

kaeli

scorpion_53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Why?

As a junior-level Java programmer beginning in .NET, I'm being forced to
conclude that if I had a choice, I'd use .NET every time. Everything that
took me forever to figure out how to do in Java takes 3 seconds to do in
..NET.
Problem is, of course, that it doesn't work in Unix, and that's what I'm
stuck with.
Note that I'm pretty much a beginner in both languages and my background is
web apps and small command-line programs, so I was already used to
ASP/VBScript and C and am not really considering things that others might
consider when comparing the two. I'm just talking how easy it was for me to
do what I needed to do, quickly.
I'm asking because I'd love to hear some advantages to using Java that I
haven't thought of. I've been very frustrated lately. :)
Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

If you are used to Unix apps, Eclipse is supposedly very nice. Lots of people
love it. I hated it.
If you are used to Windows apps (as I am), JBuilder has a free version that I
like a lot.
2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)? is there
a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?

Beats the holy heck outta me, but someone else answered this one.
3. I believe they use .idx files for their database structure. Can Java be
of use in reading, modifying and inserting data into these environments?

Anything you can find a driver for, it can read.
No nice ADO with datasources here. You have to actually go find a driver,
install it somewhere along your classpath, and set up a DB connection. You
*could* use JDBC/ODBC (closer to ADO), but by all accounts I've read, it
sucks.
The drivers, by the way, seem to be provided by the DB people. I had to go
get one from Oracle. It didn't come from Sun. The driver for Oracle is like
classes111.zip or something, so don't be looking for the same stuff you
download to make a datasource for .NET, 'cuz that's not it. :)
4. What is the java equivalent (if there is one) to ADO.NET?

There is none. At least nothing I've found. If someone knows of one, I'd love
to know about it, b/c ADO makes life a LOT simpler for me.
5. Am I looking at a huge learning curve?

If you've ever used C++ in a real OOP way, not too huge, probably. Otherwise,
IMO, yes.
I'm picking up .NET like *that*, yet I'm still having a hard time with some
aspects of java.
It took me 3 minutes to set up a DB connection to a point where I could
read/write to the DB with .NET. It took me over a week when I first started
with Java to get everything as I needed it, because I didn't have the right
drivers and so on.
So, I guess it depends on if you have help, what your background is, and so
on.

--
--
~kaeli~
Kill one man and you are a murderer. Kill millions and you
are a conqueror. Kill everyone and you are God.
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/wildAtHeart
http://www.ipwebdesign.net/kaelisSpace
 
K

Kevin L

kaeli said:
Anything you can find a driver for, it can read.
No nice ADO with datasources here. You have to actually go find a driver,
install it somewhere along your classpath, and set up a DB connection. You
*could* use JDBC/ODBC (closer to ADO), but by all accounts I've read, it
sucks.

Of course ADO is a superset of ODBC. Microsoft thought it was worthwhile
enough to copy. JDBC is just Java's implementation of ODBC, which is a
word made entirely of constenants and NOT an acronym.

No development platform will carry drivers for all databases. He could
be using Unidata afterall! (another fine IBM product)
 
G

Gary Labowitz

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

"forced to conclude"
Red flag number one.
Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

Yes, many. Sun makes all its SDK and lots of other libraries available free,
has a large set of tutorials, all free, and there is much else to be had.
You haven't checked on Google, have you?
Red flag number two.
2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)? is there
a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?
Probably.

3. I believe they use .idx files for their database structure. Can Java be
of use in reading, modifying and inserting data into these environments?

If so, they are truly obsolete. idx/htx was an early attempt to do what is
now done with ASP(MS) or JSP(Sun). You won't find much help keeping idx
files up-to-date. Of course, if you meant instead idx files as indexes to a
database (ala dBase or FoxPro) then you are seriously out-of-date. Either
way ...
Red flag number three.
4. What is the java equivalent (if there is one) to ADO.NET?

Not parallel, but you would use JDBC and either bridge to ODBC (not
recommended for production work) or get a driver for the database in use for
JDBC. These run from baby systems for free (like the JDBC/ODBC bridge) to
fully capable DB drivers for lots of $$$$. I am presuming here you don't use
XML, but if so there are parsers for that as well.
5. Am I looking at a huge learning curve?

Probably. The fact that COBOL was even mentioned, and idx, and ADO means you
may be locked into old technologies. Replacing these with current
technologies will be a large task. So, to be even remotely successful you
will have to WANT to do it, not feel that you are forcing yourself.

Too many red flags.
 
P

Peter Ashford

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

IMO Eclipse is the best free IDE out there. The latest version of
Netbeans ain't too bad either. Both are free but big downloads.

The Sun Java SDK is free. Also from Sun, grab the Java Tutorial (you
can download it for offline usage which is handy) and be sure to grab
the Java docs too. Between these two documentation sources, you can
find most of your answers. Otherwise, google is your friend.

I'm not too sure of the answers to your other questions, so I'll skip them.
 
T

Tony Morris

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

Yes, download the SDK - start up your favourite text editor and get
learning.
2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)? is there
a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?

Yes - I have been writing Java applications for AIX for many years.
What do you mean by '(non DB2 environment)'? DB2 has nothing to do with
Java.
3. I believe they use .idx files for their database structure. Can Java be
of use in reading, modifying and inserting data into these environments?

A file with the extension of .idx has nothing to do with Java.
4. What is the java equivalent (if there is one) to ADO.NET?

JDBC 3.0 and/or JDO 1.0.
5. Am I looking at a huge learning curve?

The .NET CLR and Java have many striking similarities.
Assuming you are familiar with the CLR, Java should be a breeze - however,
there are a few pitfalls that apply to Java and not .NET (and vice versa).
 
V

Vincent Cantin

Some questions:
1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

It is hard to shoot a bullet in your feet with Java. In fact, Java will
embed the bullet in a safe exception just before it touch the feet. So ...
it will not cost you a leg, you will just be notified of a
IllegalArgumentException : "Bullets are not elligible for leg penetration"
.... when the bullet will try to peneter the feet and the penetration will be
canceled.

Vincent
 
J

Jim Cochrane

It is hard to shoot a bullet in your feet with Java. In fact, Java will
embed the bullet in a safe exception just before it touch the feet. So ...
it will not cost you a leg, you will just be notified of a
IllegalArgumentException : "Bullets are not elligible for leg penetration"
... when the bullet will try to peneter the feet and the penetration will be
canceled.

On the other hand, when the customer comes after you with a gun because
your software did not meet the agreed upon specifications, or when the
software controlled weapon you are holding fires (because the software
switch that had the "safety" on failed with your IllegalArgumentException)
and the CO is killed as a result, the above safety argument might not
make you much happier.
 
O

Owen Jacobson

It is hard to shoot a bullet in your feet with Java. In fact, Java will
embed the bullet in a safe exception just before it touch the feet. So ...
it will not cost you a leg, you will just be notified of a
IllegalArgumentException : "Bullets are not elligible for leg penetration"
... when the bullet will try to peneter the feet and the penetration will be
canceled.

Not only will Java helpfully pad them in exceptions, but you must be
prepared to catch said bullets -- even if you're only *talking politely*
with someone carrying a gun.

Cheers, etc
 
C

Christian Hvid

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

Yes. Besides the latest SDK from Sun - you probably need:

1. An IDE:

http://www.eclipse.org/ or
http://www.jetbrains.com/idea/index.html (recommended)

2. A build/make tool:

http://ant.apache.org/

3. If you are doing web applications - some web application framework
and server. Look at these open source projects:

http://jakarta.apache.org/velocity/
http://jakarta.apache.org/tomcat/index.html
http://struts.apache.org/

If you are doing GUI, you will do with Swing (contained in the SDK)
but in that case consider the alternative IDEs JBuilder or NetBeans
for their good GUI builders.
2. Can programs written here run on AIX 5.1 (non DB2 environment)? is there
a specific install I need to do to make these programs work on AIX 5.1?

Built programs (jar files and class file) should run without
modification on IBM AIX. Beware of what Java version is running on the
AIX.
3. I believe they use .idx files for their database structure. Can Java be
of use in reading, modifying and inserting data into these environments?

Dunno? IDX files sound like DB2, Java can talk to DB2.
4. What is the java equivalent (if there is one) to ADO.NET?

There is the java.sql package in the standard Java distribution and
some of the EJB stuff may be relevant. But also look at these two open
source projects, which may be very helpful in what you are trying to
do:

http://www.hibernate.org/
http://xstream.codehaus.org/
5. Am I looking at a huge learning curve?

IBM AIX is not exactly user friendly. You might be learning two new
environments: Unix and Java at the same time. Be patient and persitent
:-D

regards,

Christian Hvid
http://vredungmand.dk
 
H

huy

scorpion53061 said:
Hello,

I am a vb.net programmer. That being said I have been forced to conclude I
need to learn java ...

Try becoming just a programmer instead of a vb.net programmer or a java
programmer. You wil learn much more and find it easier to use different
languages.
Some questions:

1. Is there a low cost way to learn, compile and develop for this langauge?
(aka Visual Studio but not costing an arm and a leg like this platform)

If you understood all the OOP concepts in vb.net or c++ you should'nt
have too much trouble.

Huy
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
473,744
Messages
2,569,484
Members
44,903
Latest member
orderPeak8CBDGummies

Latest Threads

Top