Hello JavaRanch: hopefully all is lovely across the way;
I am new here and new to
JAVA and this is my first post. The whole 'forum' idea is somewhat new to me as well (for real). I already know the following is lengthy (sort of) because I didn't quite figure out the "Add New Topic" button was actually the 'send' button until now. However, there is one element of 'fortuitousness' involved here: I saved the letter. "Hence" 3 hours later...we try again (me & Sybil...)...[a little levity there please]...anyway:
I have recently acquired 'Head Start Java' based on the volume of extremely favorable reviews on Amazon.com. I had been trying to navigate through a different book ("Java Programming", Joyce Farrell, 2nd Edition), and have had some experience as a 'technical editor' (long ago...and meaning I looked for mistakes and inconsistencies in a technical manual and other people agreed that 'yes, indeed', my vetting was plausible...). Once you do this, you will never read a book the same again. Mistakes appear like movie stars*.
Finally, after an exasperating and very time consuming foray into Farrell's book, I tracked Amazon's reviews of said book: 1 star (and for all the right reasons [PLUS the apparently excruciating blunders involving the JAVA aspects of the book]...and of 'dubious reflection on many things of late...' the 2 five star reviews of said book were both anonymous...). So I purchased "Head Start Java" and hence, now I am here.
I think my situation is somewhat awkward: I loaded JDK 1.4 on the computer I use (from J.F.'s book), however "Head Start Java" requires JDK 5. I have joined Sun Development Network and downloaded all kinds of things: the JDM, JAVA5BUNDLEWITHNETBEANS, the JDE, changed the auto.exec.bat, etc. But nothing works. However, there remain some possibly ethereal circumstances involved here: the computer I use is not hooked up to the internet. I'm an idiot. A person I know who seems reasonably knowledgable says I don't need all these things I downloaded (literally put on a travel drive and whisked away). He says all I need is JDK 5 which I can get from JGRASP. I look at JGrasp's page and confusion pervades like holes in Swiss. Earlier in this post, I suggested one of the 'ethereal circumstances' surrounding this situation might be the possibility I'm an idiot. Well let's clear the air on that possibility: I AM an idiot with computers. But I have had some momentary fits of success during the 6 months or so I've been involved with computers (successes with making HTML, CSS, and multiple Javascripts** all work on the same ['fairly cool' I still think] page).
Oddly enough, my culminating success (an external style sheet controlling multiple pages, inline frames, drop-caps, disco-bars, tiered rollovers w/opacity accuotrements, cool-map of Mid. East created in Fireworks (4), many different [like 12], external Javascripts culminating in a harmonious confluence of data on one multi-layered, 'user doesn't have to scroll' news page (of which that little yellow triangle with intangible logic still haunts me EVERYTIME I opt to gawk at my creation...) blah, blah, blah WAS THE POINT of no return: learn JAVA or die (actually, sans drama, I really mean 'learn JAVA or be bored to tears cutting and pasting Javascripts...). So again, hence, I am here.
So what I'm hoping somebody out there might find the time to do is, is explain in baser-than-layman-terms how I might go about getting JDK 5 onto my travel drive and on my netless computer. Is there a disc I can buy somewhere which works kind of like the 1.4 JGRASP disc which came with author Farrell's book. Is that necessary? Should I catagorically uninstall the various things I've installed up to this point (the dreaded 'U'
word...). BUT WAIT DEAR READER...I'm not absolutely certain these 'things' are installed...I can access them, they appear, they don't do anything (other than tell me they can't do anything...). So basically I'm lost.
And it's no fun being a JAVAWANNABE.
In closing, Thank You for reading this (whoever you may be), and hopefully some kind soul will empathize with my plight and aid me in this hour of need (I hope that's not too corny...).
Sincerly,
Welch
* My 'technical editing' stint was YEARS ago so I unconditionally accept all blame for all errors in whatever I write.
** People may wonder why I don't want to learn how to write Javascript code: I think about everything which can be done with Javascript has pretty well been done. JAVA, from what I've seen, appears like a whole new world of endeavor is possible...
CIAOALOHA
