3.3 RUNNING THE EXAMPLE PROGRAMS

A large number of example Java programs accompany this book. As stated, Java programs cannot run as .exe files like software developed with C or C++. The Java compiler (javac) compiles the source code into a class file, to be executed by the Java interpreter (java). Class files can be run within an IDE, which implements the Java 'virtual machine' and also brings together a text editor to create the source code and a compiler, as well as the Java interpreter. There are many IDEs, including Borland's JBuilder^®, Netbeans^® and Eclipse^®, availabel for free download at the time of this writing. The source code for all programs is supplied so that the IDE may create a new project, using it before compiling, running and testing the program. However, the compiled class files are supplied too, and you can simply run them using the Java interpreter.