Java 8 and Its Features That Programmers Love

Java is one of the computer programming languages that are used widely for both web application, and mobile app development. The developers can write Java code once, and run it on multiple platforms without recompiling. So it becomes easier for them to create applications that work seamlessly with a variety of devices and platform. Oracle has released the version 8 of Java with a number of new features and enhancement. In addition to making programmers more productive, the new features further make it easier for them to develop and run a variety of Java programs.

New Java 8 Features that Make Programmers more Efficient and Productive

Lambda Expression and Functional Interface

Lambdas are one of the most important and talked about language changes in Java 8. It enables developers to pass functionality as a method argument. So it becomes easier for programmers to reduce the code clutter by using a single method class. For instance, if the programmer uses lambda expressions to add functionality to a button click action, the code will look both neat and compact. Java 8 further enables developers to define a functional interface that defines a single abstract method.

Nashhorn JavaScript Engine

The latest version of Java also comes with a new JavaScript engine called Nashhorn. The developers can use Nashhorn to write standalone JavaScript application in Java. As the Nashhorn is designed from the scratch, it performs better than other JavaScript engines, while being compatible with ECMA normalized JavaScript specification. The new engine will further reduce the gap between Java and JavaScript.

New Data and Time API

Java programmers often find it daunting to accomplish date and time manipulation. But with modern applications being accessed by users residing in different time zones, data and time management has become critical. Java 8 effectuates date and time manipulation through a new API. The Data and Time API included in Java 8 enables developers to use the package java.time package. The new package includes the methods required for making date and time operations simple and easy.

Extended Interface Declaration

Java 8 further introduces two new concepts to extend interface declaration. Now Java developers can extend interface declaration by using the default or static method. Unlike default methods, the abstract methods need to be implemented. But the abstract methods enable developers to add new methods to an existing interface without breaking the code’s binary compatibility. Thus, it becomes easier for developers to update existing interfaces without affecting the code written for older versions.

Pipelines and Streams

The Stream API introduces functional style programming into Java. The API further helps developers in writing clean and concise code. However, stream needs to be used alongside a pipeline. A pipeline can be defined as a sequence of aggregate operations through which stream propagates elements from a source. The programmers can now use stream and pipeline to access elements from various collections, and manipulate the elements by applying operations on them.

Base64 Encoding and Decoding

While creating modern applications, programmers have to use base64 encoding and decoding to efficiently store and transfer binary data over media. But Java developers have to use third-party tools to effectuate file transfer using base64 encoding and decoding. But Java 8 supports base64 encoding and decoding. So it becomes easier for programmers to effectuate the transfer of binary data without using any third-party tool or API.

Functions to Effectuate Bulk Data Operations for Collections

Java 8 enables programmers to effectuate bulk data operations for collections using two packages, i.e., java.util.stream and java.util.function. Despite being similar to an iterator, a stream comes with a number of additional functionality to process a collection more efficiently. Further, a stream can be used in a serial as well as parallel way. The developers also have option to use several methods and operations, provided by java.util.stream package, including max, min, count, filter, collect, reduce, limit, findFirst and findAny.

On the whole, the developers can avail the features of Java 8 to reduce the time and efforts required for building large and complex applications. However, it is also important for developers to spend some time to understand some of the lesser known features included in the most recent version of the programming languages.

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