AP Computer Science/Resources

These are some additional resources for learning about and using Java, as well as preparing for the AP Computer Science exam.

Official Websites

 * Java.com is the official website of the Java platform, created by Sun Microsystems. This is where you can download the Java platform software for your computer.
 * Sun Java SDN is the official website for Java development from Sun Microsystems, the creators of Java. This is where you can download Java and the Java SDK (JDK), view the API (documentation) for Java, and find many resources and tutorials that will help you learn to code in the Java programming language.
 * AP Subjects is the official College Board student website for all AP exams, including the AP Computer Science A and AB exams. This site has information about the exam, registration, testing dates, and preparation materials.
 * AP Central is the official College Board website designed for AP course instructors and contains additional information and preparation materials.

Programming Tools

 * If you are programming in Java, it will be helpful to have Java installed on your computer! The Java platform software can be downloaded from the Java website as mentioned above.  Java is free and cross-platform and runs on the Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X, GNU/Linux, and other operating systems.
 * The Java SDK (JDK) is required for compiling Java code and creating executable programs. The JDK can be downloaded from Sun Java SDN as mentioned above.  The JDK is free and cross-platform, and runs on the Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X, GNU/Linux, and Sun Solaris operating systems.
 * The Java Wiki Integrated Development Environment (JavaWIDE) is a development environment in a wiki. It can be used on any platform and requires no installation other than the JRE 1.5 or higher (most computers already have this).  It supports concurrent editing, easy-to-use version control, code completion and many other commonly desired features.
 * NetBeans is a popular free and open-source programming Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for Java and other programming languages from Sun Microsystems, the creators of Java. NetBeans is cross-platform and can run on the Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X, GNU/Linux, and Sun Solaris operating systems.
 * Eclipse is another popular free and open-source programming Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for Java and other programming languages from the Eclipse open-source community. Eclipse is cross-platform and can run on the Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X,  and GNU/Linux operating systems.
 * BlueJ is another free and open-source programming Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for Java. They have put together a package for easy install of the Advanced Placement Computer Science case study, GridWorld.
 * The Processing IDE is popular with programmers creating small interactive and visual applications. With few simple tweaks, it is suitable for learning the skills necessary on the exam.

Lessons and Tutorials
The Java Tutorials page from the Sun Java SDN website has some good information, lessons, and tutorials that are helpful for learning Java.

AP Computer Science A video tutorials with explanations and visual examples.

Related Wikibooks

 * Java Programming provides a more comprehensive introduction to the Java programming language, including topics that will not be tested on the AP exam.
 * The Programming languages bookshelf features many Wikibooks with more information about many programming languages.
 * The Computing department features several bookshelves of Wikibooks related to computers and computer sciences, with a broader range of computing information.