First developed in 1991, Java is an excellent first language for the aspiring programmer because of its growing popularity in the development community; seasoned pros will find it easy to learn. Primary among this revised edition's offerings is information on the recently released Java 1.3, known as the 2.0 in the techie world becuase it represents such a major upgrade. Schildt, a renowned programming author, skillfully combines code, theory, and reference matter. Libraries that already own the third edition (1999) should purchase, as Java 1.3 is the only version that Sun Microsystems now supports.