New Additions to the Java Programming Language

In the Solaris Express 8/04 release, the following features are now available to developers who use the Java language:

• The ability to declare type-safe generic types.

• Automatic conversion between primitive types and their object counterparts, referred to as “autoboxing” and “autounboxing.”

• The ability to create type-safe enumerated types, more specifically, an enhanced “for loop.”

• The ability to import a static namespace, an annotation API for use with packages, fields, methods, and classes.

• Permission to use subclassed return types, covariant returns, and variable argument lists. The javac compiler enables these features by default.

The Java programming language changes reduce the complexity and the amount of additional code that is required for common Java programming tasks. These changes also reduce the risk of runtime errors that a developer might introduce.