Starting Out with Java: From Control Structures through Data Structures is designed to be used in a 2 or 3 semester/quarter sequence for beginning programmers.  Tony Gaddis emphasizes problem-solving and program design by teaching the Java programming language through a step-by-step detailed presentation. He introduces procedural programming early and covers control structures and methods before objects.  Students are engaged and have plenty of opportunity to practice using programming concepts through practical tools that include end-of-section and chapter exercises, case studies and programming projects.   

Table of Contents:
Preface   Chapter 1 Introduction to Computers and Java 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Why Program?    1.3 Computer Systems: Hardware and Software 1.4 Programming Languages 1.5 W hat Is a Program Made of? 1.6 The Programming Process 1.7 Object-Oriented Programming Review Questions and Exercises Programming Challenge   Chapter 2 Java Fundamentals 2.1 The Parts of a Java Program 2.2 The print and println Methods, and the Java API 2.3 Variables and Literals 2.4 Primitive Data Types 2.5 Arithmetic Operators 2.6 Combined Assignment Operators 2.7 Conversion between Primitive Data Types 2.8 Creating Named Constants with final 2.9 The String Class 2.10 Scope 2.11 Comments 2.12 Programming Style 2.13 Reading Keyboard Input 2.14 Dialog Boxes 2.15 Common Errors to Avoid Review Questions and Exercises Programming Challenges     Chapter 3 Decision Structures   3.1 The if Statement   3.2 The if-else Statement   3.3 The if-else-if Statement   3.4 Nested if Statements   3.5 Logical Operators   3.6 Comparing String Objects .   3.7 More about Variable Declaration and Scope   3.8 The Conditional Operator (Optional)   3.9 The switch Statement   3.10 Creating Objects with the DecimalFormat Class   3.11 The printf Method   3.12 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 4 Loops and Files   4.1 The Increment and Decrement Operators   4.2 The while Loop   4.3 Using the while Loop for Input Validation   4.4 The do-while Loop   4.5 The for Loop   4.6 Running Totals and Sentinel Values   4.7 Nested Loops   4.8 The break and continue Statements (Optional)   4.9 Deciding Which Loop to Use   4.10 Introduction to File Input and Output   4.11 The Random Class   4.12 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 5 Methods   5.1 Introduction to Methods   5.2 Passing Arguments to a Method   5.3 More about Local Variables   5.4 Returning a Value from a Method   5.5 Problem Solving with Methods   5.6 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 6 A First Look at Classes   6.1 Classes and Objects   6.2 Instance Fields and Methods   6.3 Constructors   6.4 Overloading Methods and Constructors   6.5 Scope of Instance Fields   6.6 Packages and import Statements   6.7 Focus on Object-Oriented Design: Finding the Classes and Their Responsibilities   6.8 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 7 A First Look at GUI Applications   7.1 Introduction   7.2 Creating Windows   7.3 Equipping GUI Classes with a main Method   7.4 Layout Managers   7.5 Radio Buttons and Check Boxes   7.6 Borders   7.7 Focus on Problem Solving: Extending Classes from JPanel   7.8 Using Console Output to Debug a GUI Application   7.9 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 8 Arrays and the ArrayList Class   8.1 Introduction to Arrays   8.2 Processing Array Elements   8.3 Passing Arrays As Arguments to Methods   8.4 Some Useful Array Algorithms and Operations   8.5 Returning Arrays from Methods   8.6 String Arrays   8.7 Arrays of Objects   8.8 The Sequential Search Algorithm   8.9 Two-Dimensional Arrays   8.10 Arrays with Three or More Dimensions   8.11 Command-Line Arguments and Variable-Length Argument Lists   8.12 The ArrayList Class   8.13 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 9 A Second Look at Classes and Objects   9.1 Static Class Members   9.2 Passing Objects As Arguments to Methods   9.3 Returning Objects from Methods   9.4 The toString Method   9.5 Writing an equals Method   9.6 Methods That Copy Objects   9.7 Aggregation   9.8 The this Reference Variable   9.9 Enumerated Types   9.10 Garbage Collection 9.11 Focus on Object-Oriented Design: Class Collaboration 9.12 Common Errors to Avoid Review Questions and Exercises Programming Challenges   Chapter 10 Text Processing and More about Wrapper Classes   10.1 Introduction to Wrapper Classes   10.2 Character Testing and Conversion with the Character Class   10.3 More String Methods   10.4 The StringBuffer Class   10.5 Tokenizing Strings   10.6 Wrapper Classes for the Numeric Data Types   10.7 Focus on Problem Solving: The TestScoreReader Class   10.8 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 11 Inheritance   11.1 What Is Inheritance?   11.2 Calling the Superclass Constructor   11.3 Overriding Superclass Methods   11.4 Protected Members   11.5 Chains of Inheritance   11.6 T he Object Class   11.7 Polymorphism   11.8 Abstract Classes and Abstract Methods   11.9 Interfaces   11.10 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 12 Exceptions and More about Stream I/O 12.1 Handling Exceptions   12.2 Throwing Exceptions   12.3 More about Input/Output Streams   12.4 Advanced Topics: Binary Files, Random Access Files, and Object Serialization   12.5 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 13 Advanced GUI Applications   13.1 T he Swing and AWT Class Hierarchy   13.2 Read-Only Text Fields   13.3 Lists   13.4 Combo Boxes   13.5 Displaying Images in Labels and Buttons   13.6 Mnemonics and Tool Tips   13.7 File Choosers and Color Choosers   13.8 Menus   13.9 More about Text Components: Text Areas and Fonts   13.10 Sliders   13.11 Look and Feel   13.12 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges   Chapter 14 Applets and More   14.1 Introduction to Applets 14.2 A Brief Introduction to HTML   14.3 Creating Applets with Swing   14.4 Using AWT for Portability 14.5 Drawing Shapes   14.6 Handling Mouse Events   14.7 Timer Objects 14.8 Playing Audio   14.9 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges   Chapter 15 Recursion   15.1 Introduction to Recursion   15.2 Solving Problems with Recursion   15.3 Examples of Recursive Methods   15.4 T he Towers of Hanoi   15.5 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 16 Sorting, Searching, and Algorithm Analysis   16.1 Introduction to Sorting Algorithms   16.2 Introduction to Search Algorithms   16.3 Analysis of Algorithms   16.4 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 17 Generics   17.1 Introduction to Generics   17.2 Writing a Generic Class   17.3 Passing Objects of a Generic Class to a Method   17.4 Writing Generic Methods   17.5 Constraining a Type Parameter in a Generic Class   17.6 Inheritance and Generic Classes   17.7 Defining Multiple Type Parameters   17.8 Generics and Interfaces   17.9 Erasure   17.10 Restrictions on the Use of Generic Types   17.11 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 18 Collections   18.1 Introduction to the Java Collections Framework   18.2 Lists   18.3 Sets   18.4 Maps     18.5 The Collections Class   18.6 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 19 Array-Based Lists   19.1 Introduction to Lists   19.2 Creating an Array-Based List to Hold String Objects   19.3 Creating a Generic Array-Based List   19.4 Writing Iterator Classes and Iterable Lists   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 20 Linked Lists   20.1 Introduction to Linked Lists   20.2 Operations on Linked Lists   20.3 Doubly-Linked and Circularly-Linked Lists   20.4 Recursion on Linked Lists   20.5 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 21 Stacks and Queues   21.1 S tacks and Their Applications   21.2 Array Implementation of Stacks   21.3 Linked Implementation of Stacks   21.4 Queues and Their Applications   21.5 Array Implementation of Queues   21.6 Linked List Implementation of Queues   21.7 Generic Implementation of Stacks and Queues   21.8 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Chapter 22 Binary Trees, AVL Trees, and Priority Queues   22.1 Binary Trees and Their Applications   22.2 Binary Search Trees   22.3 A VL Trees   22.4 Priority Queues   22.5 Common Errors to Avoid   Review Questions and Exercises   Programming Challenges     Index     Student CD-ROM: Appendix A          The ASCII/Unicode Characters Appendix B           Operator Precedence and Associativity Appendix C           Java Key Words Appendix D           Installing the JDK and JDK Documentation Appendix E           Using the javadoc Utility Appendix F           More about the Math Class Appendix G          Packages Appendix H           Working with Records and Random Access Files Appendix I         Using JBuilder 8 Appendix J            More about JOptionPane Dialog Boxes Appendix K           Answers to Checkpoints Appendix L           Answers to Odd-Numbered Review Questions Case Study 1         Calculating Sales Commission Case Study 2         The Amortization Class Case Study 3         The PinTester Class Case Study 4         Parallel Arrays Case Study 5         The FeetInches Class Case Study 6         The SerialNumber Class Case Study 7         A Simple Text Editor Application