Java 6 New Features

Java SE 6 incorporates a broad range of enhancements to the infrastructure of Java rather than specific syntax enhancements (unlike Java 5)

• Java SE 6 features include:
– XML and Web services support
– JDBC 4.0 support
– More Annotation types
– More flexible annotation processing
– Jave compiler APIs accessible from programs
– Application client GUI enhancements for both AWT and Swing

• Javas SE 6 address the growth of Web services and XML processing in the Java community
including support for:
– Web Services client stack
– Streaming API for XML (StAX)
– Java Architecture for XML Binding (JAXB) 2.0
– Java API for XML-based Web services (JAXWS) 2.0 Web services metadata
– XML digital signature API

• Java SE 6 includes JDBC 4.0; designed to improve ease of JDBC development by:
– Simplified access to relational data sources with utility classes
– Use of generics and annotations
– Addition of JDBC 4.0 wrapper pattern
– Safe access to vendor-specific APIs
– Automatic driver discovery
– Enhanced connection management
– New data types (including XML and SQL ROWID)


• Annotations were in Java 5.0 allowing developers to embed metadata in Java source code

• Java SE 6 includes additional built-in annotation types and annotation-processing APIs including:
– Web services metadata for the Java Platform (JSR 181)
– Common Annotations for the Java Platform (JSR 250)
– Pluggable Annotation Processing API (JSR 269)

• Java command-line compilers receive input from the file system and report errors using a stream

• Java SE 6 allows the compiler to receive input and/or send output to an abstraction of the file system

• Java programs may now specify compiler directives and process compiler output (this feature was add mostly due to software vendor
requests)

• Java SE 6 enhances application GUI capabilities with changes to both AWT and Swing

• AWT
– Faster splash screens (using native code)
– System tray support (icons & messages)
– Access to browsers and other desktop application “helpers”

• Swing
– Improved drag-and-drop support
– Enhanced layout customization
– Simplified multi-thread programming
– Writing of GIF images

• Changes to Java class file specification (JSR 202)

• Framework to connect Java programs to scripting-language interpreters (JSR 223)

• New bi-directional (allowing backward navigation) collection classes