Introduction

The Java Platform, Standard Edition for OS X provides a Java environment that is highly integrated with OS X. This integration brings together the Java platform’s versatility and OS X’s advanced technologies to offer users a wider selection of applications and developers a first-class development and deployment platform.

OS X version 10.6 includes both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Java SE 6 out of the box. This opens up the entire Mac user base to Java application and applet developers, and conversely, the world of Java applications to OS X users.

While Java's promise of “write once, run anywhere” is true on OS X, there are a number of things you should do to ensure that your application's user experience adheres to conventions and behaviors that Mac users have come to expect from their applications. This document seeks to highlight these methods so you can spend your time writing applications instead of troubleshooting.

Who Should Read This Document?

This document is for the Java developer interested in writing Java applications in OS X v10.6 with Java SE 6. This document is primarily for developers of pure Java applications.

This is not a tutorial for the Java language. This document assumes you have a basic understanding of Java development and Java development environments. Many resources exist in print and on the web for learning the Java programming language. If you are new to programming in Java, you may want to start with one of Sun’s tutorials available online at http://java.sun.com/learning/new2java/.

Organization of This Document

This guide contains the following articles:

• Overview of Java for OS X describes the Java platforms available on OS X.

• Apple Developer Tools for Java introduces you to the Apple suite of developer tools, along with recommended tools from other manufacturers.

• Java Deployment Options for OS X discusses how you can distribute your Java application on OS X.

• OS X Integration for Java provides you with some handy tips for making your Java application act and feel more like a native Mac app.

• User Interface Toolkits for Java shows you the different user interface elements common in OS X.

• Core Java APIs and the Java Runtime on OS X discusses the how core Java APIs vary on OS X.