Despite being almost 30 years old, Java is still one of the world’s most popular programming languages, with an active community. It figures as one of the ten most popular programming languages for students to learn today. The secret of its popularity relies on its constant evolution, adaptation to market demands, and technological advancements.
As a Java developer, you should always seek to improve your skills and be prepared to work with the latest trends, such as Machine Learning, reactive programming, mobile development, and many more.
Let’s look at the best tips for Java developers to improve their abilities.
You must understand the Java Virtual Machine:
It is not mandatory to understand how the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) works to start programming in Java. However, if you devote time and effort to understanding the JVM and its basic components and processes, it will be much easier to solve complex problems in the future in an efficient manner.
A good place for any Java developer to start is to learn:
· JVM components or subsystems: ClassLoader subsystem, runtime data area, the runtime engine
· JIT Compilation (which is part of the JVM)
· JVM options (standard, non-standard and advanced)
· Read the AG records
It is also beneficial for developers to learn about JVM performance optimization to quickly identify problems and bottlenecks and create high-performance applications more easily and faster.
Learn the latest version of Java
Java 8 was released in 2014, but many developers are still unfamiliar with its main features, such as Stream API or Lambda expressions. We’re now up to Java 19. Most vacancies for Java developer positions require a good knowledge of Java, and you should keep your knowledge updated to avoid falling behind.
Learn Spring and Spring Boot
Spring is the most popular framework used by Java developers, so you must have excellent knowledge of it. In addition to Spring, developers should also look to master Spring Boot (an opinionated version of Spring) and learn Spring MVC and Spring Cloud.
Good knowledge of Spring allows you to create flexible and robust applications and means you can work with microservices that are among the most popular trends.
Get to know the most popular APIs and libraries
APIs and libraries help developers create applications faster, so as a developer, you’ll want to know the most popular. Here are the tools that every Java developer should know:
· NoSQL databases (MongoDB, ElasticSearch, etc.)
· Gradle
· Maven
· Hibernate
· TopLink
APIs: OpenJDK, Android, IS2T, etc.
The best thing about these tools is that they all come with detailed documentation, and developers can contact the Java community for help.
Practice constantly
Practice makes the teacher, and this is 100% true for software development. The best developers devote no less than two hours a day to coding and solving various challenging tasks. For example, a developer can create a small project or participate in a coding challenge to stay motivated and frequently dedicate time to the coding act.
Although some senior Java developers are becoming interested in administrative tasks such as team supervision, client communication, and mentoring, it is important to remember that only regular practice will ensure that they become better Java developers.
Get familiar with DevOps
DevOps is a set of practices that aim to unite the operations and development departments, increase the transparency of the processes between them and optimize the workflow.
DevOps supports the Agile methodology and includes practices such as infrastructure as code, microservice design rather than monoliths, continuous delivery and integration, and automated testing.
Although DevOps does not directly affect a developer’s Java skills, learning the above practices is still helpful in optimizing the work process.
Don’t forget to test
Unit testing is one of the mandatory practices that many developers still overlook. For example, some people believe that testing knowledge is not necessary to be a good developer, but that’s simply not true. This task involves testing individual code units, allowing developers to identify any possible problems.
If you have not yet done any testing, you should start with JUnit, as it is the most popular testing tool in the Java community. Alternatively, Mockito and PowerMock are also used for unit testing.
In addition to unit testing, it is useful for developers to learn other testing methods, including integration testing, system testing, and acceptance testing. By learning and applying these methods, a developer gets a 360-degree view of an application and can more easily identify problems and solve them successfully.
