In a first course in Computer Science, the primary goal is to teach the fundamentals of the field. Basic concepts are introduced with the help of a programming language that is often viewed as simply a medium through which algorithms are expressed. From that perspective, it does not matter which language is used in an introductory course, because any would suffice. In practice, however, the language can have a profound impact on the students’ learning experience. First, the style of the language constrains the way and the order in which topics can be introduced. Further, the language taught in the first course must support the rest of the curriculum. For these reasons and more, a language-defined text is an important component in an introductory course.

This book covers elementary concepts in creating and manipulating 2D and 3D graphical objects, covering topics from classic graphics algorithms to perspective drawings and hidden-line elimination.

Completely revised and updated throughout, the second edition of this highly popular textbook contains a host of ready-to-run-programs and worked examples, illuminating general principles and geometric techniques. Ideal for classroom use or self-study, it provides a perfect foundation for programming computer graphics using Java.

Over the past few years, Java has evolved into more powerful programming environments. The most notable development related to computer graphics is its support for 3D graphics. Many application examples illustrated in this book could be readily implemented using Java 3D without any understanding of the internal working of the implementation, which we consider undesirable for computer science students. We therefore believe that this textbook continues to serve as an indispensable introduction to the foundation of computer graphics, on which many application program interfaces (APIs) and graphics libraries could be developed, and more importantly, how they are developed.

This book covers all aspects of OSWorkflow for Java developers and system architects, from basics of Business Process Management and installing OSWorkflow to developing complex Java applications and integrating this open-source Java workflow engine with the third-party components Drools for business rules, Quartz for task scheduling, and Pentaho for dashboards. Authored by an active developer of the OSWorkflow project, it gives step-by-step instructions, explaining the basics and clarifying and reinforcing principles with real-life examples. OSWorkflow is a pure Java open-source workflow engine for technical users, who can focus on the business logic and rules without Petri Net or finite state machine coding and easily integrate OSWorkflow into applications to create simple or complex workflows as needed. Because OSWorkflow provides a relatively low-level but highly flexible workflow implementation for Java developers, it is not a quick plug-and-play solution for non-technical users.

A humorous and friendly introduction to programming for undergraduate students meeting the subject for the first time. Using Java as a running example, the authors outline the principles of programming that will serve as a valuable foundation in good practice for when students meet other languages in later courses. Packed with cartoons and entertaining examples, this book is an accessible, student-friendly guide to programming for beginners.

This book teaches Business Analysts to model business processes in JBoss jBPM and generate workflow application code from their models without Java coding expertise. It is a full toolkit for anyone wanting to implement Business Process Management correctly, covering tasks common to all BPM implementations, although it is focused on popular, free, open-source jBPM, with its flexible, scalable process engine, pluggable modular architecture, and easy programming model (jPDL) blending the best of Java and declarative techniques. The practical approach with step-by-step instructions uses a realistic case study to explore and explain BPM, model creation, and implementation. It covers: efficient, standards-friendly mapping of business processes; using the jBPM toolset to work with business process maps, analyze process execution data, and for ongoing process improvement; setting up business rules: task assignments, escalation points; process variables; automating activities and decisions.