Advanced Java Programming

Course Description

COP2805C – Advanced Java Programming is a 3-credit-hour computer science course that extends the foundations from COP2800C (Java Programming) into advanced Java language features and the broader Java ecosystem. Topics include advanced object-oriented programming (abstract classes, interfaces with default methods, inner classes); generics with bounded types and wildcards; the Java Collections Framework at depth; functional programming with lambda expressions and streams; concurrent programming with threads; networking; graphical user interface programming (Swing or JavaFX); database connectivity (JDBC); and the introduction to specific Java application areas (web development with Spring at conceptual level, Android programming concepts, etc.).

COP2805C is the standard Java track continuation course at institutions where Java is the primary instructional language. The course typically combines lecture and example-based instruction with substantial programming projects exercising the advanced Java features. Students typically complete several substantial programming projects through the term, including projects that exercise GUI programming, multithreading, networking, or database connectivity.

COP2805C is a Florida common course offered at approximately 11 Florida institutions. It is required or strongly recommended in Java-track computer science, software engineering, and information technology programs. The course transfers as the equivalent course at all Florida public postsecondary institutions per SCNS articulation policy.

Learning Outcomes

Required Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

• Apply advanced object-oriented programming, including abstract classes and abstract methods; interfaces with default and static methods (modern Java 8+); the implements keyword and multiple interface implementation; the diamond problem resolution; inner classes (nested classes, inner classes, local classes, anonymous classes); the engineering applications.
• Apply polymorphism at advanced level, including the substitution principle (Liskov substitution); the appropriate use of inheritance vs. composition; design implications for maintainable Java code.
• Apply Java generics, including parameterized types; generic methods; bounded type parameters (extends and super); wildcards (?); type erasure at conceptual level; the engineering value of generics for type safety.
• Apply the Java Collections Framework, including the Collection hierarchy (Collection, List, Set, Queue, Map); common implementations (ArrayList, LinkedList, HashSet, TreeSet, HashMap, TreeMap, LinkedHashMap, ArrayDeque, PriorityQueue); the appropriate selection among collection implementations; iteration patterns; the engineering applications.
• Apply functional programming with Java lambdas and streams, including lambda expression syntax; functional interfaces (Predicate, Function, Consumer, Supplier, BiFunction); the stream API (filter, map, reduce, collect, count, sum); parallel streams at introductory level; the engineering value of functional approaches for data processing.
• Apply introductory concurrent programming with Java threads, including thread creation (extending Thread or implementing Runnable); the Runnable interface; the start() and run() methods; synchronization with synchronized keyword; basic thread safety considerations; common thread issues (race conditions, deadlocks at conceptual level).
• Apply introductory Java networking, including the URL and URLConnection classes for HTTP requests at introductory level; the Socket and ServerSocket classes for TCP networking at introductory level; the engineering applications.
• Apply Java graphical user interface programming, including the chosen GUI framework (Swing for traditional desktop applications; JavaFX for modern desktop applications); event-driven programming; common widgets; layout managers; basic event handling; the engineering applications.
• Apply introductory database connectivity with JDBC, including the JDBC API; connection management; basic SQL queries through JDBC; PreparedStatement for parameterized queries (avoiding SQL injection); the engineering applications.
• Apply advanced exception handling, including custom exceptions; exception chaining; the appropriate use of checked vs. unchecked exceptions; resource management with try-with-resources at depth.
• Apply Java I/O at advanced level, including the I/O streams hierarchy; buffered vs. unbuffered streams; character vs. byte streams; the modern java.nio.file package for file operations; serialization at introductory level.
• Apply advanced Java software development practices, including unit testing with JUnit at introductory level; build tools (Maven or Gradle) at conceptual level; basic version control with Git; the integration with software engineering practices.

Optional Outcomes

• Apply introductory web programming with Java, including servlets and JSP at conceptual level; the introduction to Spring/Spring Boot at conceptual level; the engineering applications.
• Apply introductory Android programming, including the Android development environment; basic Android concepts (Activity, Intent, View) at introductory level (typically more thoroughly developed in dedicated mobile development courses).
• Apply advanced concurrent programming, including the java.util.concurrent package; ExecutorService for thread pools; common concurrent collections; the engineering applications.
• Apply introductory design patterns, including common design patterns in Java (Singleton, Factory, Observer, Strategy at introductory level); the engineering applications.
• Apply Java reflection at introductory level, including the Class object; basic reflection use; the engineering applications and limitations.
• Apply introductory annotations, including built-in annotations (@Override, @Deprecated, @SuppressWarnings); custom annotations at introductory level.

Major Topics

Required Topics

• Java in Modern Software Development: Java's continued role in modern software development; modern Java language features (Java 17 LTS, Java 21 LTS); the evolution of the Java ecosystem; industry use cases at depth.
• Abstract Classes and Methods: The abstract keyword for classes and methods; abstract methods that subclasses must implement; the engineering applications; the comparison with concrete classes.
• Interfaces — Foundations: The interface keyword; interface methods (traditionally abstract by default); implementing interfaces with the implements keyword; multiple interface implementation; the engineering applications.
• Interfaces — Modern Features: Default methods (Java 8+) that provide default implementations; static methods in interfaces; private methods in interfaces (Java 9+); the engineering implications and the diamond problem resolution.
• Inner Classes: Nested classes (static inner classes); inner classes (non-static); local classes (defined within methods); anonymous classes; the engineering applications and use cases.
• Polymorphism at Advanced Level: The substitution principle (Liskov); composition over inheritance principle; the engineering judgment for choosing between inheritance and composition; design considerations for maintainable code.
• Java Generics — Foundations: Parameterized types; generic methods; the type parameter syntax; the engineering value of generics for type safety; the contrast with raw types (the legacy pre-generics approach).
• Java Generics — Bounded Types: Bounded type parameters with extends; multiple bounds; the engineering applications.
• Java Generics — Wildcards: The wildcard (?); upper bounded wildcards (? extends T); lower bounded wildcards (? super T); PECS (Producer Extends, Consumer Super); the engineering applications.
• Java Generics — Type Erasure: The concept of type erasure (generics are compile-time, not runtime); the implications (cannot create generic arrays, cannot check generic type at runtime); the engineering implications.
• The Java Collections Framework — Hierarchy: The Collection interface; the List, Set, Queue, and Map interfaces; the relationship among interfaces; the engineering applications.
• Java Collections — List Implementations: ArrayList (resizable array, fast random access); LinkedList (doubly-linked list, fast insertion/deletion at ends); the engineering selection between them.
• Java Collections — Set Implementations: HashSet (hash table-based, no order); TreeSet (red-black tree-based, sorted); LinkedHashSet (hash table-based with insertion order); the engineering selection.
• Java Collections — Map Implementations: HashMap (hash table-based); TreeMap (red-black tree-based, sorted by key); LinkedHashMap (hash table-based with insertion or access order); the engineering selection.
• Java Collections — Queue and Deque: ArrayDeque (the modern recommended deque implementation); PriorityQueue (heap-based); the engineering applications.
• Java Iteration Patterns: Iterator and ListIterator; for-each loop with collections; the engineering applications.
• Lambda Expressions — Foundations: Lambda expression syntax; the relationship to functional interfaces; the engineering value (more concise than anonymous classes for single-method interfaces).
• Functional Interfaces: The functional interface concept (an interface with exactly one abstract method); common functional interfaces (Predicate, Function, Consumer, Supplier, BiFunction); the @FunctionalInterface annotation; the engineering applications.
• Method References: Method reference syntax; the four kinds of method references (static methods, bound instance methods, unbound instance methods, constructors); the engineering applications.
• Stream API — Foundations: The stream concept (sequence of elements supporting aggregate operations); creating streams (from collections, arrays, generators); the engineering value of declarative data processing.
• Stream API — Intermediate Operations: filter, map, flatMap, distinct, sorted, peek, limit, skip; the lazy evaluation of intermediate operations.
• Stream API — Terminal Operations: forEach, collect, reduce, count, sum, average, min, max, anyMatch, allMatch, noneMatch, findFirst, findAny; the engineering applications.
• Collectors: The Collectors utility class; common collectors (toList, toSet, toMap, joining, groupingBy, partitioningBy); the engineering applications.
• Parallel Streams: Parallel stream processing at introductory level; the considerations for parallel streams (when they help, when they don't); the engineering implications.
• Concurrent Programming — Foundations: The motivation for concurrent programming; threads in Java; thread states; the basic mental model.
• Thread Creation: Extending Thread; implementing Runnable (preferred); using lambda expressions for Runnable; the engineering applications.
• Thread Synchronization — Introduction: The problem of shared mutable state; the synchronized keyword; intrinsic locks (monitor locks); volatile variables at conceptual level; common thread safety issues (race conditions, deadlocks at conceptual level).
• Java Networking — Foundations: Network programming concepts; the URL and URLConnection classes for HTTP at introductory level; the HttpClient API (modern Java 11+) for HTTP requests; the engineering applications.
• Java Networking — Sockets: The Socket class for TCP client connections; the ServerSocket class for TCP servers; basic client-server communication; the engineering applications.
• GUI Programming — Framework Selection: Swing (the traditional Java GUI framework, well-established but dated); JavaFX (the modern Java GUI framework, often used for new applications); the engineering trade-offs.
• GUI Programming — Foundations: Event-driven programming; the event-dispatch thread; common widgets/components; layout managers (BorderLayout, FlowLayout, GridLayout, BoxLayout, GridBagLayout for Swing; or layout panes for JavaFX); the engineering applications.
• GUI Programming — Event Handling: Event listeners; the listener interface and adapter classes (Swing); JavaFX event handlers; the integration with lambda expressions for cleaner event handling code; the engineering applications.
• Database Connectivity — JDBC Foundations: The JDBC API; loading database drivers; connection management with DriverManager and DataSource; the engineering applications.
• Database Connectivity — Queries: Statement, PreparedStatement (avoiding SQL injection), CallableStatement; ResultSet for query results; transaction management at introductory level; the engineering applications.
• Advanced Exception Handling: Custom exceptions extending Exception or RuntimeException; exception chaining with the cause field; the appropriate selection of checked vs. unchecked exceptions; multi-catch syntax; try-with-resources at depth.
• Java I/O at Advanced Level: The I/O streams hierarchy; buffered vs. unbuffered streams; character (Reader/Writer) vs. byte (InputStream/OutputStream) streams; the modern java.nio.file package (Files, Paths classes); serialization at introductory level.
• Unit Testing with JUnit: The JUnit framework at introductory level; @Test annotation; assertions (assertEquals, assertTrue, assertNotNull, etc.); test fixtures; the engineering value of unit testing.
• Build Tools — Introduction: Maven (XML-based, established); Gradle (modern, more flexible); the role of build tools (dependency management, compilation, testing, packaging); the engineering value.
• Version Control with Git: Basic Git operations (init, add, commit, push, pull); the relationship between Git and code collaboration; the engineering value.

Optional Topics

• Web Programming with Java: Servlets and JSP at conceptual level (legacy patterns); the introduction to Spring and Spring Boot at conceptual level (the dominant modern Java web framework); the engineering applications.
• Android Programming: The Android development environment with Android Studio; basic Android concepts (Activity, Intent, View, Fragment) at introductory level; typically more thoroughly developed in dedicated mobile development courses.
• Advanced Concurrent Programming: The java.util.concurrent package; ExecutorService and thread pools; concurrent collections (ConcurrentHashMap, BlockingQueue); CompletableFuture for asynchronous programming; the engineering applications.
• Design Patterns: Common design patterns in Java (Singleton, Factory, Observer, Strategy, Decorator, Adapter at introductory level); the engineering applications and the role of design patterns in maintainable code.
• Reflection: The Class object; basic reflection (getting class info, method introspection, dynamic method invocation); the engineering applications (frameworks, serialization) and limitations.
• Annotations: Built-in annotations; custom annotations with retention policies; the engineering applications (configuration, framework integration).

Resources & Tools

• Common Texts: Starting Out with Java: From Control Structures through Data Structures (Gaddis — widely adopted continuation text); Introduction to Java Programming and Data Structures (Liang — advanced edition); Effective Java (Bloch — best practices reference, often used as supplementary); Core Java Volume II Advanced Features (Horstmann); Java Concurrency in Practice (Goetz — the standard concurrency reference)
• Online Resources: Oracle's Java Tutorials (advanced sections); Baeldung (high-quality Java tutorials and articles); the official JavaFX documentation; the Spring Framework documentation; LeetCode and HackerRank for advanced practice
• Software: Java Development Kit (JDK — free); IDEs (IntelliJ IDEA Community Edition — free, dominant in industry; Eclipse — free; VS Code with Java extensions); Maven or Gradle for build management; Git for version control; JUnit for testing; database servers for JDBC practice (MySQL, PostgreSQL, H2 for embedded testing)
• Reference Resources: Stack Overflow (for specific Java questions); the official Java API documentation; the Java Language Specification (advanced reference)

Career Pathways

COP2805C supports advanced Java track career pathways:

• Senior Java Software Development — Direct preparation for senior Java software engineering roles in enterprise software, financial services, healthcare, and other Java-heavy industries.
• Backend Web Development — Java with Spring Boot dominates enterprise backend web development; substantial demand.
• Android Mobile Development — Java (and Kotlin) for native Android development.
• Enterprise Application Development — Substantial Java use across enterprise application development.
• Financial Services Software — Java is dominant in financial services; relevant to Florida financial industry (Tampa banks, Raymond James, financial technology).
• Healthcare Technology — Java is common in healthcare software; relevant to Florida healthcare technology (AdventHealth, Tampa General, BayCare).
• Government and Defense Software — Java is widely used in government and defense software systems.
• Data Engineering — Java (and Scala on the JVM) is widely used in big data and data engineering (Apache Spark, Apache Kafka, Apache Beam).
• Florida Tech Industry — Florida's growing technology sector includes substantial Java-using employers.

Special Information

The Advanced Java Track

COP2805C is the standard Java track continuation course. Students completing COP2800C and COP2805C have substantial Java foundations supporting subsequent Java-related coursework (data structures in Java, software engineering, web development, mobile development) and direct entry into Java-track software engineering careers.

The Modern Java Language Evolution

Modern Java (Java 17 LTS, Java 21 LTS) includes substantial language evolution since Java 8 — records for concise data classes; sealed classes for closed type hierarchies; pattern matching with instanceof and switch; text blocks for multi-line strings; var for local type inference; enhanced switch expressions; the HttpClient API; the modern Date/Time API. COP2805C course content typically tracks current LTS Java versions.

The Industry Java Ecosystem

The Java ecosystem includes substantial frameworks beyond core Java that students typically engage with in subsequent coursework or industry: Spring and Spring Boot (the dominant Java web framework); Hibernate/JPA (the standard Java ORM); Kafka and other event streaming; Apache Spark for big data; Android SDK for mobile. Course content typically introduces some of these at conceptual level.

The Relationship to Data Structures

COP2805C and COP3530C (Data Structures, often taught in Java) are typically taken in similar timeframes. The Java Collections Framework that COP2805C covers is the practical realization of many data structures that COP3530C covers theoretically. Students often see substantial overlap between these two courses, with each reinforcing the other.

General Education and Transfer

COP2805C is a Florida common course number that transfers as the equivalent course at all Florida public postsecondary institutions per SCNS articulation policy.

Course Format

COP2805C is offered in face-to-face, hybrid, and online formats. The combination of language content and substantial programming projects translates to multiple formats; many institutions offer online sections.

Position in the Computer Science Curriculum

COP2805C is typically taken in the second year of CS study, in the semester following COP2800C. The course is foundational for subsequent Java-track and general CS coursework.

Difficulty and Time Commitment

COP2805C is challenging given the breadth of Java features covered. The course requires substantial out-of-class time (typically 8-10 hours per week beyond class time) for both the conceptual content and the programming projects.

Prerequisites

COP2805C typically requires COP2800C (Java Programming) with grade of C or better; sophomore standing in computer science typical.

AI Integration (Optional)

AI tools are widely used in Java development contexts. The foundational considerations from COP1000C and the Java-specific considerations from COP2800C apply; this section focuses on advanced Java considerations.

Advanced Java AI Considerations

• Generic types help AI accuracy — generics provide additional type information that helps AI tools generate correct code
• Lambda and stream patterns are well-represented in AI training data — AI tools generally produce reasonable lambda and stream code, though sometimes use older patterns when modern features would be cleaner
• Concurrent programming is challenging for AI — AI tools sometimes generate concurrent code that compiles but contains subtle race conditions or deadlocks; concurrent programming with AI assistance requires careful verification
• GUI programming patterns vary — AI tools may generate Swing patterns when JavaFX would be appropriate or vice versa; students should specify the desired framework
• Database code requires security verification — AI-generated JDBC code sometimes uses Statement (vulnerable to SQL injection) when PreparedStatement is required; students should verify SQL injection safety

Where AI Tools Help

• Boilerplate generation — generating GUI event handlers, JDBC connection patterns, JUnit test scaffolding
• Stream pipeline generation — generating stream pipelines from natural language descriptions (with verification)
• API discovery — finding the right Java API for a task (with verification)
• Concept explanation — alternative explanations of generics, lambdas, concurrency

Where AI Tools Mislead

• Concurrent programming bugs — race conditions and deadlocks in AI-generated concurrent code
• SQL injection vulnerabilities — AI-generated database code may not properly use PreparedStatement
• Outdated patterns — AI tools sometimes generate dated Java patterns when modern features would be appropriate
• Generated complete homework — the academic integrity considerations from COP1000C apply

Academic Integrity

The use of AI tools to generate Java code submitted as student work without permission is academic dishonesty under most institutional policies. The advanced Java skills developed in COP2805C — particularly the concurrent programming, GUI programming, and database connectivity skills — are foundational for senior Java software engineering work and difficult to develop without genuine practice. Students should consult their institution's specific AI use policies.