is Java right for me?

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aunst8_2000@yahoo.com - 24 Apr 2007 06:51 GMT

Sorry for this stupid question... i don't know Java but am a fast
learner.
I want to write a simple app such as a Task Manager in Windows... much
like Outlook's Task Manager but with different features. Is Java the
right language to learn to do this? I do not want to make the app
dependant on a web browser but would like to make is a stand-alone
app.

Thanks
-Ed

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coldfusion78@gmail.com - 24 Apr 2007 14:51 GMT

Ed,

If this is going to be a GUI app just for Windows, you might be better
off using C++ or C# with Windows Forms. If you are using C#, you can
get a free IDE (search for SharpDevelop) that should be good enough
for you to put your app together with. I say this because Java GUI
programming is still pretty painful even with the Eclipse toolset, and
it won't look like a native Windows app without some effort.

-Chris

On Apr 24, 12:51 am, aunst8_2...@yahoo.com wrote:

> Sorry for this stupid question... i don't know Java but am a fast
> learner.
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> Thanks
> -Ed

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Andrew Thompson - 24 Apr 2007 14:52 GMT

...

>I want to write a simple app such as a Task Manager in Windows... much
>like Outlook's Task Manager but with different features. Is Java the
>right language to learn to do this?

I doubt it. Java is geared to cross-platform applications,
and usually relies on OS specific (C++/.NET) hooks to
do this sort of stuff. Might as well just code it in C++
or .NET to start with.

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Andrew Thompson
http://www.athompson.info/andrew/

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Daniel Dyer - 24 Apr 2007 15:29 GMT

> ..
>> I want to write a simple app such as a Task Manager in Windows... much
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> do this sort of stuff. Might as well just code it in C++
> or .NET to start with.

I think the OP means more of a "TO DO" list kind of application rather
than a process viewer (at least that's what I'm assuming from the mention
of Outlook).

To the OP, Java is a good choice if you want to run on Linux and Mac with
very little extra effort. If you only want to run on Windows then there's
not any real advantage in using Java over the alternatives.

Dan.

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Daniel Dyer
http://www.uncommons.org

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zero - 24 Apr 2007 19:44 GMT

> To the OP, Java is a good choice if you want to run on Linux and Mac
> with very little extra effort. If you only want to run on Windows
> then there's not any real advantage in using Java over the
> alternatives.
>
> Dan.

What about ease of use? C++ was suggested by a lot of posters, but it is a
lot harder to learn than Java.
Then again if the dificulty level is a factor, there are other languages
easier than Java.

Zero

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Scooby - 24 Apr 2007 20:40 GMT

>> To the OP, Java is a good choice if you want to run on Linux and Mac
>> with very little extra effort. If you only want to run on Windows
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>
> Zero

Well, I personally don't think C++ would be the right option for the OP.
But, C# is very much like Java, from a syntax perspective and is probably
the best solution in this case.

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Daniel Dyer - 24 Apr 2007 23:35 GMT

>> To the OP, Java is a good choice if you want to run on Linux and Mac
>> with very little extra effort. If you only want to run on Windows
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
> Then again if the dificulty level is a factor, there are other languages
> easier than Java.

Yes, you're right. I was thinking primarily of the main .Net languages
(C# and VB.net).

Dan.

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Daniel Dyer
https://watchmaker.dev.java.net - Evolutionary Algorithm Framework for Java

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Jochen Schulz - 24 Apr 2007 16:00 GMT

* Andrew Thompson:

> ..
>> I want to write a simple app such as a Task Manager in Windows... much
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> and usually relies on OS specific (C++/.NET) hooks to
> do this sort of stuff.

I /think/ you misinterpreted the OP's usage of "task manager". Think
"todo list".

Of course this is possible with Java, but I am not sure whether it is
the right language for a beginner. Scripting languages like Python or
Ruby might be a little bit easier to learn and provide results more
quickly which is important to keep up motivation.

If you are planning to become a professional programmer, Java is
probably a good language to learn since demand is quite high. But for
many people writing in Java is not as much fun as writing in other
languages. But that is a highly subjective matter so in my opinion you
should just try something and see how far you get. Learning different
programming languages is a good thing anyway, even if you end up as a
Java monkey. :)

J.

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jon - 24 Apr 2007 16:04 GMT

On Apr 23, 11:51 pm, aunst8_2...@yahoo.com wrote:

> Sorry for this stupid question... i don't know Java but am a fast
> learner.
> I want to write a simple app such as a Task Manager in Windows... much
> like Outlook's Task Manager but with different features.

"Simple app" such as Task Manager? <sigh>. You sound like my
supervisor. ("Oh, and we need it by this afternoon, about 1:00 or
1:30, for an important demonstration. It will by your fault if we
can't have this up and running.")

> Is Java the
> right language to learn to do this? I do not want to make the app
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> Thanks
> -Ed

No, you'll want a language that can more readily access the Windows
APIs. I'd use MS Visual C, but nowadays most MSians would suggest
C#. You'll want a few days to get up to speed with the language....

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Patricia Shanahan - 24 Apr 2007 16:14 GMT

> Sorry for this stupid question... i don't know Java but am a fast
> learner.
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> dependant on a web browser but would like to make is a stand-alone
> app.

I think you are getting mixed answers because of an ambiguity in your
question.

The Windows "Task Manager" is a specific program that displays system
information, such as the process list.

On the other hand, the term "task manager" can just refer to a to-do and
calendar program.

They are very different things. Which do you mean?

Patricia

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blueice - 24 Apr 2007 18:04 GMT

I think Visual C++ would be a lot more appropriate to write Windows
tools. You don't necessarily need Visual Studio to do anything like
that (meaning, you can do it all in Notepad) but it would be of great
help. You're going to be accessing lots of system data and I'm sure
visual studio has plenty tools/APIs to make this easy for you. plus,
it's native to the Windows environment, Java isn't.

On Apr 23, 10:51 pm, aunst8_2...@yahoo.com wrote:

> Sorry for this stupid question... i don't know Java but am a fast
> learner.
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> Thanks
> -Ed

Reply to this Message

Daniel Pitts - 25 Apr 2007 01:13 GMT

On Apr 23, 10:51 pm, aunst8_2...@yahoo.com wrote:

> Sorry for this stupid question... i don't know Java but am a fast
> learner.
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> Thanks
> -Ed

Java is not depended on a web browser. Although I'm confused what you
maen by Outlook's Task manager vs Windows Task Manager. I don't know
about Outlooks task manager, but Windows task manager needs to know
about running tasks and processes, etc... If you mean something like a
Calendar, then that's a different problem altogether. For a Calendar
program, Java might be worth it. It depends on a few things, not the
lease of which is your target audience/platform.

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is Java right for me?

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