I don't like JGrasp much because it isn't a professional tool used in the real-world, and is more for hobbyists and those learning. I'm not the biggest fan of this program although I used to use it before I discovered the power of true IDE's. This is a standard beginners compiler and used by many schools that teach Java. JGrasp - JGrasp is a basic Wordpad-like program that also can compile and run Java programs. When you're at the download page, if you only want Java and none of the other features, make sure to download the Java SE bundle, the one that is 31 MB. Still, it is a great tool for development. I still have Netbeans and find it easy to work with, although it's not AS friendly as Eclipse. Netbeans - Another great IDE, and the one I used before I discovered Eclipse.
When at the downloads page select Eclipse Classic if you want just the basic features that will run Java. The tutorials on this site all use Eclipse as it is extremely user friendly and the best professional tool for beginners. That is probably the version you should go ahead and download.Įclipse - This is my favorite IDE. Once at the downloads page, it automatically selects what it thinks is the correct version for your system. If you don't have the JRE, you may download it at. Note: No matter what compiler you get, you'll need the JRE (Java Runtime Environment). If you have a compiler you'd like to recommend, feel free to contact me in the Contact Us section of the site. As I find others, I will of course try them out and then if I like it enough I'll put it up here as well. Here are some of the compilers that I have personally used throughout my Java programming career.