Published in Javarevisited

·May 13

Smalltalk or Java? Why not both!

Learn how Smalltalk and Java both influenced Eclipse Collections and can help you grow as a developer. Taking a walk with Smalltalk On May 12, 2022, I gave a talk titled “Smalltalk or Java? Why not both!” at the Pittsburgh Java User Group. The meetup was hosted by Sirisha Pratha and Rinat Gatyatullin. The talk…

Java

4 min read

Apr 27

Jumping into code

A haiku Learning how to code is harder than skydiving and failure helps you © Donald Raab Background: I often think about how challenging it can be for new developers to get started in programming. I think it is helpful to let new developers know that confusion and failure are expected, and trying and failing is a great way to build confidence and learn. Learning can be done safely outside of a production code base. This is why I am such a huge fan of code katas for learning. Keep practicing until you understand how to do things.

Haiku

1 min read

Jumping into code

A haiku

Learning how to code
is harder than skydiving
and failure helps you

Background: I often think about how challenging it can be for new developers to get started in programming. I think it is helpful to let new developers know that confusion and failure are expected, and trying and failing is a great way to build confidence and learn. Learning can be done safely outside of a production code base. This is why I am such a huge fan of code katas for learning. Keep practicing until you understand how to do things.

The Eclipse Collections Code Katas

Learn the Eclipse Collections library by completing hands-on Java code katas.

donraab.medium.com

Published in Javarevisited

·Apr 21

Map vs. Bag

Discover a better way to count things in Java. Using Map to count the beads on an abacus Here’s a simple problem to solve using a Map. How can we count the number of beads tallied on an abacus by color? First, I will define an enum for Color.

Java

4 min read

Published in Javarevisited

·Apr 19

Map vs. Multimap

Discover a safer alternative to mapping keys to multiple values in Java. I need a Map with multiple values At some point in your years of coding in Java, you have probably needed a Map<K, Collection<V>>. If you haven’t needed one yet, give it some time… you will. There are more convenient ways to manage the Collection…

Java

5 min read

Feb 28

Comparing my Smalltalk and Eclipse Collections Wordle Kata Solutions

Solving a problem with multiple languages and libraries can sometimes bring new insights. Challenge Yourself and Others to Learn I accepted a JLDD (Jet Lag Driven Development) challenge recently to implement a Wordle Checker Kata in Java. My friend José Paumard sent me this challenge and I set out to solve it using my favorite Java…

Java

10 min read

Comparing my Smalltalk and Eclipse Collections Wordle Kata Solutions

Published in Javarevisited

·Feb 19

The elusive and beautiful Java Method Reference

I love lambdas in Java 8, but method references are elusive and amazing Lambdas are flexible anonymous bits of code We can solve a lot of interesting problems in Java using lambdas. We can use expression lambdas for simple things, and statement lambdas for more complex things. Lambdas can call out to other methods on the current…

Java

6 min read

Published in Oracle Developers

·Feb 12

A Wordle JLDD Kata Challenge

Learn how to use Eclipse Collections to solve a Wordle word guessing kata Katas are coding puzzles to keep your skills sharp I love creating and solving code katas. Code Katas are programming puzzles that can help keep your coding skills sharp. I wrote an article titled “Learn to Kata and Kata to Learn” for the “97 Things Every…

Java

7 min read

Jan 21

Trouble with the Curve

Whether life throws you fastballs or curveballs, accept them and swing true. What do you say now, jackass? That’s known as trouble with the curve. -Clint Eastwood as Gus from “Trouble with the Curve” An Extraordinarily Good Man My father-in-law passed away this week. His name was James, but everyone called him Jimmy. I…

4 min read

Published in Javarevisited

·Jan 17

Haiku for Java using Text Blocks

Creative writing meets Java Text Blocks and Eclipse Collections My Month of Haiku In September 2021, I took a month off from technical writing in my blog. I experimented with writing haiku for the month. Haiku are a structured form of poetry with a total of seventeen syllables, five in the first line, seven…

Java

4 min read

Dec 27, 2021

Exploring the Smalltalk Collections API in unit tests using Pharo 8.0

Learn a little Smalltalk, and you might thank yourself later. A Little Smalltalk for the Holidays I wanted to write a blog for the holidays to meet my commitment of writing one blog per month. I had some experiments I had written using Pharo 8.0 that I decided to organize into individual tests so I could…

Smalltalk

6 min read