This book guides you from beginning to advanced techniques by starting off with a very simple Java SE 6 application, and then covering the fundamentals of generics, collections, annotations, reflections, IO, threads, and networking in Java SE 6. You'll also have some fun learning and creating GUIs, and even use the latest in AWT and Swing as the foundation for a Java-based game application. And the chapters on JavaSound and Java 2D will be an enjoyable learning experience you'll want to share with friends.

Last of all, this book covers data access using the latest JDBC 4 API, security, and dynamic Java scripting language support (which may later open your Java experience to languages like Groovy, BeanShell, and JRuby). By the time you finish this book, you will have mastered the core techniques essential to professional Java developers.