Programming

Java EE Tutorials - Java Enterprise Edition 2015-06-27

In part 1, I tried to explain the various “Editions” of Java, and mentioned that Java Enterprise Edition is very much a misnomer. In this post we will take a look at why this is, and what Java EE is actually all about.

It’s all about the Specs

If we want to get really technical, Java EE is not a runtime environment, nor is it a single technology. If you want to get really technical, Java EE is a collection of specification documents which define how several different enterprise technologies should work in Java.

Java EE Tutorials - Communication Breakdown 2015-06-27

There is no doubt that Java is a serious language made by smart people. Unfortunately, it is also the product of a for-profit corporation, and is currently maintained by yet another for-profit corporation. As a result, it is cared for not only by a team of crack developers, but also a marketing department. And that marketing department sure has screwed the pooch.

Java EE Tutorials - Introduction 2015-06-27

This summer I am mentoring a group of interns at my job. It has been an exciting experience so far, but also a very revealing one.

First, it re-emphasizes just how truly complicated enterprise software development can be. Veteran developers don’t often think about this. Most of us learned about all the layers and components and technologies that make up modern software slowly, over time. It is only when you try to teach it all at once, to someone with no experience with any of it, that you realize that something as seemingly “simple” as writing a basic Java webapp wired with Spring is actually really freaking complicated, and very difficult to explain.

Apache Shiro 2015-05-03

Throughout 2014 I encountered a lot of cool, new (to me) programming tools. Bourbon, AngularJS, node.js, Homebrew and iTerm2 have all become welcome additions to my toolbox in that time. But there’s one tool among them which I’ve loved the most - Apache Shiro. Shiro is a Java security framework that manages to do the unthinkable: it makes Java security easy. I advocate for it every chance I get, and the responses I get are always positive.