Downloading Java (JDK) and installation + API

If you're interested in trying Java programming then this tutorial will help you get started with the installation. To start off, if you're going to be doing programming with Java then you'll need the Java Development Kit (JDK) NOT to be confused with Java Runtime Environment (JRE) which is used to run Java applets and programs on your web browser/computer. 

While starting out with Java myself I found downloading and installing JDK could be confusing at certain points (you have Oracle to thank for that). It took me a few tries before I managed to get the version I needed along with its documentation (we'll talk about that later).

So, first thing we need is to download and install JDK:

• Go to the Java standard Edition website:  http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html

 You'll see something that looks like this: 

 

• Don't click on anything yet, scroll down until you see Java SE 6 Update 30. At the time of writing this Blog Java 7 is the latest version of Java, but Java 6 is the standard one. Click on Download under JDK.

• You'll be taken to the next page where you have to accept the license agreement and download the Java version suitable for your operating system. Choose the one you need, pick a download location and start the download.
• After the download is done, simply navigate to the download location and double click the file to start installation.
• The installation is simple, I recommend keeping the default install settings and change the install location (if you wish) to a different directory. Wait for it to install and That's it. It will prompt you to register, you can do that or leave it for later.

Now to download the documentation. The documentation or API is a specification document that contains all the packages, classes, methods ..etc that you need to use when you are programming in Java. Now you can simply type 'Java API' in Google and it will take you to the web version of the API, but I find it convenient to have a copy on your hard disk that you can check any time.

You can go back to the first page and do a few loops before you can find where to download it (have fun with that) or jump straight here and get it painlessly. Select a download location and start the download. Once its done un-zip the file, I highly recommend creating a shortcut to the location you extracted it to so you have quick access to it in the future and don't go searching for it if you forget its location.

Extract it to a folder like 'Documents' for example and create a desktop shortcut to the API. Inside the folder go to docs -> api -> index.html. Right-click index and then 'create shortcut', cut and paste the shortcut on the desktop.

All done!