When you work as a Java Developer, you need to know you’re competing against 9 million Java developers in the whole world. That sounds scary, but if you keep up with the new trends in Java programming, it won’t be so. Instead of sitting around waiting for jobs to trickle down (especially if you’re a freelancer developer), become better at what you do and stay ahead of the competition. These are our tips about how to stay up to date with new Java trends and become a true Java Jedi.
But first, here are a few reasons why so many companies hire Java Developers.
Java was purchased by Oracle, a major American international technology corporation. This means that Java will keep on having a lot of development and its scope in terms of platform and APIs will only increase. Java ranks first among developers for being the best choice as a coding language. For its popularity, Java ranks #2 right after C. Blu-Ray players, Android phones and a lot of TV sets run on Java. 95% of companies use Java for coding. This coding language is open source and can be used both on software and web development.
These facts showcase how useful it is to know Java. However, if you want to get hired as a Java Developer for a company, you must be ahead of the curve when it comes to your Java development skills.
Now, we’ll give you seven tips on how to become a better Java developer!
Learn Java 8
There are plenty of Java developers with 7 to 8 years of experience who still don’t feel comfortable using Java 8. Java 8 offers several different features that aren’t included in the previous versions, such as Lambda Expressions, Java Stream API and several Default Methods.
Getting a comprehensive knowledge of Java 8 will help you get ahead of many competitors in the Java development market.
Among the key features of Java 8 you should learn, there are the default and static method in interfaces, which help the developers create interfaces with method implementation. There’s also the forEach() method in the Iterable interface. This function removes the java.util.function.Consumer as an argument, allowing to keep business logic separately at a different location, which makes it easier to reuse.
Functional Interfaces were also added in this new Java version, which turns an interface with only one abstract method into a functional interface. This annotation helps avoid the accidental introduction of abstract methods in the functional interfaces. A new Java Stream API was also introduced, to help execute filter/map/reduce operations with the collection. This new API allows for managing sequential as well as parallel execution.
Be knowledgeable in Java APIs and Libraries
Java has the second biggest Stack Overflow community, which helps creating a Java ecosystem. In this ecosystem, Java APIs and Libraries form an essential function. A great Java developer know how to work through these, as well as the Java Development Kit and Third-party Libraries.
Java SE documentation allows access to working examples and workarounds with references on Java API. Now, it’s not expected of a Java Developer to understand all the APIs and every element in the library. However, it’s crucial for you to be aware of a few essential APIs and Libraries.
The top ten Java Libraries are open source and free to use. These include: Java Standard Libraries, JHipster, Maven, Apache Commons, Guava, google-gson, Hibernate-ORM, Mockito, Junit, Log4j and Slf4j. These are the main libraries you should be aware of, even if you only know well 2 or 3 that are more important for your daily tasks. Nonetheless, you should have a knowledge of what each of these ten is better for.
Know Spring Boot
For every Java Developer who builds apps, this is an essential Java platform. It is useful for the Java SE programming model and also enables developers to build new apps from “plain old java objects” (POJOs).
For developing a web application, microservices and REST APIs, Spring Boot, Spring MVC and Spring Cloud are the most used platforms. These Spring platforms have plenty of advantages you should be aware of, such as making a local Java method a remote procedure, make a Java method execute in a database transaction, and making a local Java method a management operation. So, knowledge of Spring Boot and the likes is imperative if you’re a Java Application Developer.
Improve your Unit Testing
A skill that distinguishes an average Java Developer from a great one is their knowledge of unit testing. To validate code results in the state testing and behaviour testing, it is of the utmost importance to create unit tests for your code.
If you are a company looking out for a good Java Application Developer, you should know if the person you’re hiring has a good knowledge of the tools necessary for unit testing, automation testing, performance testing and integration testing. The good thing is, if your company is in the London Metropolitan area, software recruitment specialists in London can help you find the right person for your app development job.
If you’re a Java Developer, it’s essential for you to know how to verify the logic of a piece of a software program using unit testing. The easiest introduction to unit testing is Junit.
Understand JVM Intervals
A crucial element of the Java Runtime Environment is Java Virtual Machine (JVM). If you understand JVM, you already know a lot about Java. During programming, JVM knowledge will help you solve complex issues.
If you want to become a great Java Developer, learn about JVM system threads, how JVM executes Java bytecode, and their order of execution. In 2019, it is also important to be aware of common mistakes other Java developers make and about JVM restrictions.
Be aware of the importance of Design Patterns
As an object-oriented software developer, it’s highly relevant to enhance your knowledge about Design Patterns. Design Patterns are essential for the relationship between classes and objects. For addressing recurring issues in object-oriented systems, it helps to use a systematic naming of objects and classes.
To make your app flexible and changeable, you should incorporate a knowledge of design patterns in your skills. Knowing design patterns well helps you address issues in your app by relating them to patterns and reuse old designs or interfaces for new purposes.
Know JVM Languages
As you should know by now, knowing other coding languages helps you code better in Java. Kotlin, as an example, is highly important: it can be compiled to JavaScript source code or use the LLVM compiler infrastructure. Kotlin runs on the Java Virtual Machine and is a statically typed coding language. Scala and Groovy are also highly relevant for Java developers.
By knowing which things these languages can or cannot do, you enhance your Java knowledge and become better at developing Android apps.
These are our seven big tips for developers trying to improve their knowledge of Java. If, however, you’re a company looking out for the next big developers, we encourage you to contact WunderTalent, digital recruitment specialists for all your Java needs.
