Verify the World

Java Power Tools

This book was an impulse purchase.  About a year ago, I was wandering through my local book mega-store with my wife, looking for guides on how to raise a puppy.  As I tend to do, I gravitated toward the technical section of the bookstore.  I had taken a few classes on Java at my local community college, and wanted to eventually make a living at it, so I scanned the available books on Java.  That was when Java Power Tools caught my eye.  This book is certainly focused on Java, but it is not a programming manual, not a language specification, not an exam study guide.  It is a reference that leads the reader through the extensive world of open-source tools written to make Java software development easier and more fun.

Any organization worth its salt uses at least some of the tools described herein, and many of the larger-scale enterprises will use quite a few, often together in interlocking ways.  If you’re serious about Java development, you need to know how to use the available build tools, unit testing frameworks, issue trackers, source control management, continuous integration, code coverage, and profilers.  This book answers the vital questions of:  ”what is it?”, “where can I find it?”, “how do I use it?”, and “why do I need it?”.

As a young tester peeking my head out of the black box for the first time, I found answers to all the questions that I had stored away in my head about these mysterious terms “Ant”, “CruiseControl“, “JUnit“, and “CVS”.  Most importantly, I had finally internalized that there is far more to Java software development than just the programming language chosen.  In order to develop and release quality software, an organization must rely upon many tools (power tools) to work with the greatest possible efficiency and focus.  In the past year, I’ve used many of these tools myself, either to improve my organization’s build and release process, or to power my own Java-based automation framework.  I don’t know that I could’ve progressed with as much confidence and persistence had it not been for this book.  I’d recommend it to any blossoming Java developer, quality assurance professional in a Java shop, or project manager looking to improve the release process.