2024 is a great time to start working with Java, because 2023's Java 21 release has some amazing new features. Here's how to quickly download and install the Java 21 JDK.

Java is both a programming language and a computing platform. The former allows you to develop applications and the latter allows you to run the applications that you, or others, develop.

The JDK is the development platform for building Java applications. Learn about different JDK versions, then install a JDK in your development environment and use it to compile a Java program.