Going Inside Java

Summary

This chapter has been a bit of a whirlwind tour inside Java, poking in the corners of Java’s internal architecture that don’t get explored all that often. You should now have a better appreciation of what’s actually going on when you type java MyClass at the command prompt.

I’ve covered the following:

• The components of Java’s architecture

• What the JVM is and how it functions

• The internals of the JVM architecture

• The Java class file format

Now that you’ve taken a bit of time to explore the foundations of Java, you’re ready to start the main work of learning how to use all the different components of the Java platform in detail, starting with library, class, and method design.