■ INTRODUCTION
xviii
Listing Intro-1. Sample Code Blockpublic static void main(String[] args) {
System.out.println("Hello, World!");
}Within procedures, interface items (such as buttons and menu choices) that you should use appear
as bold text in sentences, as follows: “From the FFile menu, choose NNew.” The names of objects that
appear within the file system (such as files and directories) appear in a monospace font, as follows:
C:\temp
I should also mention that I've intentionally used an informal (almost “folksy”) style and tone. When
I'm sharing my experiences, I use the first-person singular (“I”). When I hope you're doing the same
thing I did when I wrote the book (usually writing code or thinking about a problem in a particular way),
I use the first-person plural (“We”). When I want you to do something, I use the second-person (“You”).
Also, I've made liberal use of contractions, such as “I've.” I hope you'll find the book to be more
engaging for being informal in its presentation.Prerequisites
Before reading this book, you need to know your way around at least one operating system, such as
Windows or Mac OS X. In particular, you need to know how to create and delete files on your computer.
If you've looked into how “command” or “batch” files work on your computer, that would be even
better, as that is a kind of light-weight programming.
You don't need any other prerequisites to read this book. You don't need to know math or logic or
computer science. The book covers bits and pieces of all those subjects at times, but in a pragmatic way
that doesn't rely on the reader having any existing knowledge.
All you really need is a desire to learn to program.