This book is written for students who are currently taking a Java course that uses JBuilder and for Java programmers who want to develop Java projects using JBuilder.

You can use Java 2 SDK to write Java programs. Java 2 SDK (formerly known as JDK) consists of a set of separate programs, such as compiler and interpreter, each of which is invoked from a command line. Besides Java 2 SDK, there are more than a dozen Java development tools on the market today, including Borland JBuilder, Sun ONE Studio (formerly known as Forte for Java), IBM Visual Age for Java, and WebGain Visual Cafe. These tools support an integrated development environment (IDE) for rapidly developing Java programs. Editing, compiling, building, debugging, and online help are integrated in one graphical user interface. Using these tools effectively will greatly increase your programming productivity.

This book introduces JBuilder. Produced by Borland, JBuilder is a premier Java development tool for developing Java programs. Over the years, Borland has led the charge in creating visual development tools like Delphi and C++ Builder. The first edition of JBuilder was released in September 1997. Over a short time JBuilder has been improved rapidly. The newest edition is JBuilder 8. Since JBuilder 3.5, JBuilder has been written completely in Java. It uses the Swing component library, provided by JavaSoft (Sun Microsystems), as its foundation. This pure Java component library allows JBuilder to have a sophisticated user interface and remain 100% Java. The Swing library also gives the added benefit of a pluggable look-and-feel, which allows JBuilder to adjust its appearance to match the computer's native operating system UI without sacrificing the power and flexibility of the JBuilder UI. JBuilder runs on the Windows 98, NT, and 2000, Mac, Linux, and Solaris platforms.

This tutorial is based on JBuilder 8, which is available in three editions: JBuilder Personal, JBuilder Standard, and JBuilder Enterprise.

• JBuilder Personal is ideal for beginners to learn the basics of Java programming. It can be downloaded free for educational use from www.borland.com.
• JBuilder Standard contains the essential components for developing Java applications and applets. It also contains the Borland JavaBeans components for creating database applications.
• JBuilder Enterprise contains all the components in JBuilder Standard, plus support for creating distributed applications using CORBA, and for creating Web applications using Java servlets, Java Server Pages, and XML.