Know How And Why Java Programming Technology Is Platform Independent?

Know How And Why Java Programming Technology Is Platform Independent?

The simple meaning of platform-independent is that the Java compiled code or the byte code can effectively run on all operating systems.  

A program is written in a human-readable language, which contains words, phrases, and more that are understandable by the machine. To make the machine understand the source code, it needs to be in a machine-level language. Here comes the role of a compiler. A compiler converts the high-level language into a format understood by the machines.  

In simple words, a compiler refers to a program that translates the source code for another program from a programming language into executable code. This executable code is a sequence of machine instructions that can get executed by the CPU directly or an intermediate representation interpreted by a virtual machine. This intermediate representation in Java development services is named the Java Byte Code.

How is the Java platform independent?

Computer programs are closely related to specific hardware and operating systems. For instance, Windows applications cannot run on Mac Operating System, and Mac applications cannot run on an Android Operating system. Also, some applications are common for all operating systems like MS Word, so when you hire Java developers, they wonder whether they need to be written individually for all operating systems.  

To resolve this diversity of the platforms, such applications are written independently for all the platforms. Java development services provide a solution to write applications independent of the hardware and operating systems. Therefore, Java is termed a platform-independent programming language.  

Java architecture is also defined as a distinct combination of hardware, operating system, and software that provides an environment to run programs. It can help run programs on multiple platforms without re-writing them individually for a particular platform – Write Once Run Anywhere (WORA).

The programs written by the programmer, known as source code, are not well-understood by the computer hardware and operating systems. Source code is closely similar to human language, consisting of words and phrases. It helps convert the machine language code, which computers can understand and execute accordingly.  

Machine language code is defined as a set of instructions that gets executed by the computer. The compiler helps with this conversion process.

How to execute Java code?

In Java, the compiler converts the program into bytecode, which is not executable code. Any other platform or operating system may run this bytecode. However, if you execute its program or file, a .class file gets created, which is a non-executable file. To execute this file, we will need a virtual machine, which again is platform-independent. For instance, Mac and Linux have different JVM than Windows. It supports portability as one of its key features since its code’s portable bytecode makes it platform-independent.  

What happens when we compile codes in Java?

Whenever you hire Java developer enters the statement “javac filename. jave” or compiles a code in Java, Javac compiles the code and creates an intermediate code termed Byte Code.

Bytecode is responsible for adding crucial features in Java, as it is independent of the platforms. This dependency eases the tasks and can get used in various environments while less planning and translation.  

This is the point where Java development services makes the visible difference between all the programming languages. It creates a .class file, which is considered as byte code, whereas languages like C/C++ create a natively executable code when compiled, and thus makes them platform dependent.  

But the case isn’t as simple as it sounds because this byte code is not executable. We need a translator for executing this byte code, and JVM (Java Virtual Machine) brilliantly does this job. Also, JVM resides in the main memory of the computers and acts as an interpreter to execute the byte code generated by javac. Now, your codes are ready to get successfully executed.  

So, if you’re wondering how Java development services manages it all alone, it’s because of the JVM. The byte code generated by source code compilation would run in any operating system, as the JVM present in the machine differs for each operating system. This is how Java architecture is considered a platform-independent programming language.  

Conclusion

To summarize the entire concept, JVM depends on the operating system – so if you are running macOS X, you may witness a different JVM than the one running on Windows or some other operating system. This concept gets verified by trying to download the JVM for your machine. While downloading it, you will obtain a list of JVMs corresponding to different operating systems, and pick the one targeted for the operating system that you wish to run. Thus, JVM is platform-dependent, and it is the reason why Java is also “Platform Independent.”

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FAQs

Why is Java platform independent but JDK dependent?

The system-specific application of source code has limited probability. It makes it easier for the native code (written in C and C++) to interface with other programs written in Java or other languages. Therefore, Java becomes platform-independent.

Is the Java platform independent?

In Java, JVM depends on the operating system. So, if you’re running macOS X, you will have a different JVM than the one running for Windows or another operating system.  

Why is Java platform independent and robust?

Java is platform-dependent. One reason for it can be its varied features than other languages like C and C++. These features get compiled into platform-specific machines, while Java is a write-once, run-anywhere language. A platform refers to the hardware or software environment in which a program gets running.